Tragic Decision
by Soniclink137
Summary: An accident happened to Exploration Team Aura, leaving Axle's Partner, Eon, possibly crippled and teammate, Shaymin, in a coma. With the possibility of her death weighing on his mind and the possibility that his Exploration Team will end then and there, Axle must make a choice and live with the decision he made. A Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers Story.
1. The Outlaw

The storm in the air crashed and howled as rain poured down upon a large dark field where a female eevee was walking alone, the clouds so thick that they blocked out the mid-morning sun. The eevee had a brown and white bag strapped to her left side and was wearing a blue scarf over her neck. Her midsection and back were also wrapped in a white cloth. Her brown paws were muddy from walking across a dirt path in the middle of the rain, though the normal-type mostly ignored it as he kept his slow pace going.

The eevee eventually looked up and see her destination, a small village on the planes at the end of the road. The eevee picked up her pace when she saw her destination. The mud on her paws was kicked back into the rain because of the speeds she was running to get where she needed to go. Despite the fact that she ran so fast it hurt, she kept going as fast as she could. It still took a few minutes, but after that span of time the eevee finally made it to the outskirts of the village.

The eevee walked forward into the barren village. She continued past the tents and brick buildings in the village, through the dirt and rock path, keeping her eyes on the ground until she reached her destination. The normal-type eventually reached a brown building, larger than the rest of the buildings, and walked in.

"Hey there," a voice called out. "Are you the explorer we sent for?"

The eevee looked up to see a bayleef looking right back at him. "Y-yeah…I am," she said hesitantly. Now that she was here, her heart sank with the knowledge of what she was about to inquire of. "Are you the leader of this village?"

"Yes, I am. My name is Bayleef," Bayleef said. She looked at the eevee with a closer eye. "And aren't you…Eon from Exploration Team Aura?"

"Yeah, that's me," Eon said with a sad nod. "I'm one of the two founding members."

"But aren't you supposed to be…" Bayleef started but Eon interrupted her.

"Yeah, I know," Eon said with another sad nod. "Please…don't talk about that." Changing the subject, she said, "I know all about this outlaw. Don't worry, I'm on it. So would you mind explaining the situation to me? What exactly happened, what did the outlaw steal, where did he go? Any of those would be a good start."

Bayleef looked at Eon for a few seconds, examining the eevee for whatever reason. Eon just wished she'd hurry up, since the Normal-type's resolve was already wavering. Any longer, and she wouldn't be able to do the task she, and only she, needed to accomplish.

After that time, though, the bayleef was satisfied with whatever she needed to see, as she nodded at Eon. "R-right. Come with me."

The leaf Pokemon took Eon farther inside the building. They eventually reached a while infirmary-type room where two Pokémon, a sentrat and zigzagoon, were knocked out on two white gurneys. Bayleef walked over to a space in between the two of them and used a vitalizing Refresh, filling the white room with a green aura in the process, before turning back to look at Eon. The eevee herself felt the refresh behind her bandages, making her wonder if the move was meant for the two kids, or her.

"This small village has been hiding a certain treasure for generations," the bayleef said. "A Clear Wing. It's said that the Clear Wing is somehow connected to the legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh, though few outside the village know of that. Ax...The outlaw must have somehow learned about that though, because he came here and stole the Clear Wing just last night. He came in so fast that none of us actually noticed him stealing it. The only reason we know what he did in the first place is thanks to those two."

Bayleef pointed some vines to the sentrat and zigzagoon. "Those two were up late last night and happened to spot the outlaw. They tried to be a hero and stop the outlaw themselves but…they were outmatched. And outmatched."

"I…can imagine," Eon said sadly. She couldn't stop a tear or two from falling from her face as she looked at the state the two kids were in. Bruises covered them completely and the sentrat had a black-eye. She almost couldn't believe the brutality inflicted on those two kids, or the source of it.

"They were able to stall the outlaw enough for the rest of us to catch a glimpse of him though and it's thanks to that glimpse that we were able to contact you guys so quickly," Bayleef said. "We also know where the outlaw is heading."

"He left the village towards the north-east. There's a forest in that direction that the outlaw is probably heading towards to hide in. If you go now, you might be able to catch up to him before he reaches the forest."

Eon nodded. "Thanks. I'll head off right away."

Eon turned to leave the building, but Bayleef walked up to her. "Wait," she said. "How…why…why would someone like him do that?"

Eon stopped and looked back at Bayleef. She lost her voice for a few seconds, as part of her was wondering the answer to that same question. Eventually, she could only really say what she knew, but even then she wondered what the truth of it was.

"…Sometimes…we feel helpless. Like there was nothing we can do in the world. And then when we learn about what we can do, we jump at it. No matter the cost, no matter how extreme, we jump at the chance. But…there's going too far." The eevee looked at sentrat and zigzagoon one more time. "And this is going way too far."

With that, Eon left the building and went back outside in the rain. She sighed she ran off in the direction she was told. Eon quickly ran out of town, her eyes constantly on the move as she ran, scoping out for any sign of the outlaw she was looking for.

*Pant* *Pant* *Pant* *Pant*

A riolu ran across the muddy grass as fast as his little legs could carry him. Overexertion was slowing him down much more than he liked, the chill from the rain as it poured down on his blue body not helping. The glasses that he wore was dripping water on his nose and he had half a mind to drop them right there and now for all the trouble they were giving him. The blue bag he had against his right side was also wet and cold, though he was sure the item would survive.

 _Got…to…keep…moving,_ the riolu thought as he ran. He saw the trees that marked both his salvation and destination in front of him, though they were still a distance away. Still, he put in the extra effort to reach the trees before he collapsed out of exhaustion.

 _I need to make it,_ the fighting-type thought as he ran. _Need to make it to that forest. There I can hide for a while. Make sure no explorers find me. I can rest up there and examine what I got._

The riolu took a quick look at the blue bag to his side before snapping his attention back at where he was running to. _That feather…I hate what I had to do to get it, but it'll be worth it. If that feather really does what the legends say it does, then I'll have a chance. Eon…Shaymin…I might be able to save you. No matter what the cost, it'll be worth it. Even if…I won't be able to see you again because of this. It'll be worth it. Just to know you're going to be alright._

The riolu was suddenly hit in the back with an orb of dark energy. The unexpected attack flung him forward and into the dirt. The fighting-type quickly got back on his feet and whirled around to face the opponent that hit him. He clenched his paws, ready to attack, when he finally noticed who fired the attack that hit him. And when he did, his paws dropped immediately and he felt his heart nearly stop.

Standing in front of him, the riolu noticed an eevee with a brown and white bag, glaring at the fighting-type. The eevee made eye-contact with the riolu and in that brief moment where they saw into each other's eyes, the riolu could see pain and regret along with the anger. The fighting-type could also hear disappointment and sorrow in the eevee's voice when she finally spoke.

"Axle!" Eon called out.

"E-Eon?!" Axle asked in surprise as he took a step back. Of all the possible Pokémon in all the world that could possibly come after him, this was the last Pokémon he expected to do so. And the one Pokémon he almost wished wouldn't. "What the heck are you doing here?! Aren't you supposed to be-?"

Eon closed her eyes and shook his head. "Axle, enough is enough!" Eon said. "You've gone far enough. This is the end of the line for you!"

Axle still looked at the eevee with surprise on his face. "What? Do you seriously think you're going to bring me in? Eon, you need to be resting! What do you think you're doing out here?!"

"I'm here to stop you!" Eon yelled. "Axle, I was just at the village you were in! I saw what you did! W-what happened to you, Axle? What happened to my partner, my invaluable friend? Two kids are knocked out, badly bruised, and even have a few cuts because of you!"

"I'm trying to help you!" Axle answered. "You and Shaymin! Something you're apparently not thinking of! Eon, get back to the guild and-!"

"Oh don't give me that!" Eon said. "I wouldn't be out here in the first place if it wasn't for you! I don't care why you're doing this! You're gone too far Axle and this has to stop! I know why you're here, and thievery isn't the answer!"

"Then what is, Eon?!" Axle asked. "Waiting for years?! Hoping that maybe they'll finally listen to me?! You could collapse and die at any moment, and even if you don't you could end up crippled, and Shaymin still hasn't gotten out of his coma! You guys don't have years for me to get in their good graces! I did what I had to do! To make sure you guys are ok!"

"I trust the Pokémon who are taking care of us," Eon said resolutely. "I trust Chimecho. I trust the Pokémon the Guildmaster got for us. I'm willing to place my life in their paws, and I'm sure if Shaymin was awake, he would too. So why can't you trust them too? Please Axle?"

"Eon, please let me go!" Axle yelled. "I already told you I don't care what it takes! No matter what I have to save you two! If you trust them so much, then go back to the guild! You shouldn't be standing out in the rain like this!"

Eon sighed, then opened her eyes up again with a fierce expression. "Fine, I guess you made your choice then," she said softly. "There's no talking you out of this, is there? If you really want to go down this route then fine."

Eon grabbed her exploration badge with her right forepaw and raised it up for Axle to see. Loudly she announced, "I, Eon, the founder of Exploration Team Aura, the team that saved the world in the crises of time and space, am here to arrest you outlaw!" Softer she said, "Axle, I'm going to save you from yourself."

"Eon, please stop this!" Axle said. "You shouldn't be fighting like this!"

Eon shook her head and caught Axle in the eye. Tears and raindrops streamed down both of their faces as they looked each other in the eye. And when they looked each other in the eye, they both saw back to the events that led up to where they were.


	2. Height before the Fall

It was little more than a week earlier. Team Aura was tasked with a random letter from an unknown client to reach the top of a place called Sky Stairway and obtain the item on top of it. Despite the mystery surrounding the request, Team Aura didn't back down from the challenge. So they went to the dungeon and there they found…

"This dungeon is on the clouds?!" Axle asked as he carefully walked around the white fluffy floor of the dungeon, like he could fall off at any minute.

"Immmpresssive," their teammate, Shaymin, yelled with cheer as he flew around, abusing the fact that he was in his Sky Forme. "Phew, we're really high up here. Exploration Team Aura, explorers of not only the ground but now the sky."

"It certainly is impressive," Axle said as he looked around with his arms crossed around his body. "Impressive, and admittedly a little overwhelming."

The riolu then realized something. He immediately checked his surroundings until he found what he was looking for. Standing directly at the edge of the clouds, an eevee wearing a blue scarf with white lines on it and a brown bag to her side was looking down. By the rise and fall of her chest, Axle could tell that the eevee was breathing heavily and possibly hyperventilating.

"Eon, are you ok?!" Axle called out to her. He got no response so Axle immediately ran up to the eevee and placed an arm around her. That finally got the normal-type's attention. "Eon, are you ok?" Axle asked.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine now Axle," Eon said. "It's just…being up here, and so high…"

Axle nodded. "I get it. It's overwhelming. Don't worry about it though. The clouds can apparently hold us, so as long as we avoid any holes in the clouds, we shouldn't have to worry about falling."

Shaymin flew over to the two. "Plus if either of you fall, I'll just fly over to the two of you and pick you up. So you have nothing to worry about." Shaymin winked. "It's not like it'll happen anyways. I'm sure your mate will keep you from falling. Isn't that right, Axle?"

Axle rolled his eyes and groaned. "Remind me to learn Ice Punch someday," Axle whispered to himself.

"Y-yeah, alright," Eon said. "Don't…worry about me. I'll be fine." Eon took one last look at the side of the clouds before moving in. "Let's get going. By the looks of things, we've got a long walk ahead of us."

Axle and Shaymin both nodded and the three of them began their trek up the many cloud staircases they could find. The trek for them was challenging, but not too difficult for them to handle. The Pokémon that were in the dungeon served only as a minor annoyance for them as they climbed to reach the end. It was at the top of the dungeon where they finally ran into trouble.

"Hmm…it seems we're near the end of the dungeon," Axle said. He looked around and didn't see any other way to go up and they reached a large plateau of clouds that stretched high above the world.

"So then, where's the object we were told to find?" Eon asked. "Where's the Sky Melodica?"

Suddenly, despite it still being the middle of day and the skies still blue, a large darkness spread across the sky. This startled the three of them, causing each of them to look around the area to find what was causing the darkness. Axle calmed down first out of his team and immediately formed a plan.

"There's something above us!" Axle called out. "Something large! That must be what's blocking the sun!"

The trio all looked up to see a large, snake-like Pokémon flying high above them. Because the sun was behind it, it was impossible for any of them to make out any details on the Pokémon, including what color it was, but they could tell that it was massive. And when the creature finally spoke, it spoke to them in a massive voice.

" **You who comes to my airspace without permission, you who overstep the bounds given to you ground dwellers! What brings you to my lair?!"**

"We're here for the Sky Melodica, one of the Seven Treasures!" Eon announced to the creature above. "D-do you know where it is?!"

" **You who seek treasure, prepare yourselves!"** The Pokémon flew away from the sun and on the edge of the clouds in an instant, faster than Axle, Eon, or Shaymin could follow. When the three's eyes managed to catch up with the Pokémon though, they finally noticed it was green with yellow markings on its body. " **Show your power, and conquer the roaring skies! Can you overcome the rushing winds?! Or will you fall prey and be removed from this place forever?!** "

"In other words, we need to fight you to get the treasure," Shaymin said in a deadpan voice. "Yeah yeah yeah, we got it. No need for the monologue."

" **I must warn you, those who dwell on the land, that I refuse to give up the treasure easily!"** the Pokémon said. **"You do not know the true nature what you are searching for nor should you know about the treasures in the first place! I am bound to give this treasure to those who defeat me, yet I do not plan on letting that happen anytime soon! Leave now or I'll be forced to make you leave permanently!"**

"Shaymin, distract him!" Axle commanded.

"On it," Shaymin said with a smirk on his face. He flew up right in front of the Pokémon's large mouth. "So then, big guy. I have a question for you. How's your love life going?"

Axle rolled his eyes before turning his attention to Eon and whispering to her, "Eon, got any idea of what Pokémon we're facing?"

"I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's the legendary Pokémon Rayquaza," Eon whispered back. Axle finally noticed that she was quaking. "R-rayquaza's a legendary Pokémon spoken of in the same legends as Groudon and Kyogre. It's said that in the beginning, when Groudon and Kyogre were fighting in forms even stronger than they are now, Rayquaza came down and stopped the two from fighting. Rayquaza is considered to be one of the most powerful Legendary Pokémon, powerful enough that there are legends of it being able to destroy meteors larger than it."

"Type?" Axle asked.

"Dragon/Flying I believe," Eon answered.

Axle nodded his thanks. "Alright, there's nothing we can do that's effective against it, and both Shaymin and I are weak to its attacks. So all out strength is needed here. We need to take Rayquaza down as fast as possible."

"If that's even possible," Eon mumbled.

A large blue fiery beam appeared above Axle's and Eon's heads causing them both to look up immediately. Shaymin narrowly dodged the attack, though he looked surprised as if the attack came out of nowhere. The grass/flying-type immediately flew back to Axle and Eon's side.

"Uhh…I don't think I'm making any fans here," Shaymin said when he landed.

"Just be glad that wasn't Hyper Beam," Eon said.

"Alright you two, speed and strength are our friends here," Axle said. "Move fast, hit hard, and keep from getting hit yourselves. Shaymin, since it's already angry with you and you've got the most mobility, I want you to draw agro. Keep its eyes on you and away from us. Eon and I will do the brunt of the attacking."

"Righto," Shaymin said with a salute from his right fore-paw.

"Y-yeah," Eon responded. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, she was much more determined. "Let's win this!" Eon announced.

Shaymin flew upwards and fired an Energy Ball at Rayquaza to get its attention. "Hey, lord of the skies!" Shaymin called out in a taunting manor. "I thought you were going to make us leave? How can you do that when you can't even hit me?"

Rayquaza moved from his perch and flew to where Shaymin was flying in the blink of an eye. Without a moment's pause, Shaymin was slashed by Rayquaza's glowing purple claws and the grass/flying-type was sent flying down onto the clouds. Shaymin's impact luckily didn't send him through the clouds, though it did cause vapor to fly into the air, like dust in a desert.

"Shaymin!" Eon cried when she saw that.

"Well, there goes Shaymin drawing agro," Axle growled.

The riolu ran up to the point where Rayquaza was above and gave a strong bounce to reach the height of the flying Pokémon. As he flew upwards, the fighting-type's hand gained a black glow around it in the shape of a claw. With Shadow Claw in paw, Axle reached the side of Rayquaza's face and slashed directly there.

Axle managed to make contact and even did enough damage to have Rayquaza roar in pain, but that left him falling and vulnerable. So while he was flying helplessly through the air, Axle could only watch as Rayquaza found him and hit him with its tail. Axle felt the impact from the attack shake his entire body and send him slamming down into the clouds. The impact dazed him for a bit and knocked his vision out for a bit. He could only feel some warm, dry fur at his left side and taste the berry that went into his mouth.

"Hey Axle, eat up and get up quick," called out Shaymin from somewhere at his right. "We've got a battle to win!"

Axle ate the berry before reorienting himself. He quickly got back on his feet and took a quick look around the battle field. Shaymin was close to Axle's right and keeping an eye on their legendary opponent, who was flying high above the battlefield. Eon was at Axle's left, looking at him with concern.

"I'll be alright, Eon," Axle told her.

Eon nodded herself.

"Alright Eon, Shaymin, we need a change of plans! We can't fight Rayquaza if it keeps flying like this. Let's get him to the ground now!"

"On it!" Shaymin said with a nod. "I got a better idea of how fast Rayquaza is now. It's pretty fast, but nowhere near as fast as I am. I just need to keep a better eye on it."

Shaymin quickly flew up to Rayquaza and, while using his momentum to power the attack, he launched an Air Slash from both his forepaws, slashing in an X-shaped pattern. The attack knocked Rayquaza back slightly, but only served to anger it more than damage it. Rayquaza flew after Shaymin, with Shaymin flying off himself to avoid Rayquaza. They both went towards the ground, with Axle and Eon down there at the ready.

"Your turn," Shaymin said as he flew past Axle and Eon.

When Rayquaza flew over in pursuit of Shaymin, it got just low enough form Axle and Eon to strike without having to jump up high enough to be helpless afterwards. So Axle and Eon took the chance and finally struck. Axle seeped his right paw in a poisonous purple aura, getting ready to unleased a Poison Jab, while Eon took all the knowledge she gained into her Return attack. Eon's attack hit around the middle of Rayquaza's snake-like body while Axle jabbed a bit upper, in the part of Rayquaza's chest in between his arms. Both attacks connected and sent Rayquaza backwards.

Rayquaza was able to catch itself before it fell down and proceeded to fly back at Axle and Eon, Dragon Claws at the ready to slash both of them. Axle and Eon ducked underneath the claws, allowing Rayquaza to pass over them. The duo both turned around, and in doing so saw Rayquaza stopped in place, surrounded by a psychic aura. Shaymin was floating above it, his eyes glowing gold as he administered the Psychic attack.

"Urrggg…fall…down…already," Shaymin grunted. "You know what, screw this!"

Shaymin stopped using Psychic directly on Rayquaza and instead pulled is psychic power together in one place to administer a psychic blast to Rayquaza instead. It didn't cause the legendary Pokémon to fall to the ground, but the attack did damage it as Rayquaza let out a mighty roar. Shaymin flew back over to Axle and Eon's side after the attack to prepare for whatever happens next.

"This Pokémon is strong," Shaymin said while keeping an eye on Rayquaza just in case it attacks.

"Well it is a Legendary Pokémon," Eon reminded him.

" **I'm** a Mythical Pokémon," Shaymin reminded her.

"Which doesn't count for much against this thing," Axle mumbled. "One of the strongest Legendary Pokémon. Sure lives up to that name."

Shaymin looked around and noticed that the sky was starting to turn left and the sun was getting close to the horizon. "Guys, we gotta finish this up quick!" Shaymin announced. "Sun's almost down and I'm gonna lose a lot of mobility if we don't finish this up quick."

"Alright, let's all attack at once," Axle said. "Shaymin, Eon, Energy Ball and Shadow Ball at Rayquaza's face now!"

"On it!" they both yelled.

The dark orb of energy and the green orb of energy both flew at Rayquaza, who was facing the trio at the time. Both attacks exploded in its face, blinding Rayquaza for a couple of seconds. Axle took this chance to rush up to Rayquaza and launch another Shadow Claw at it as soon as the explosion dissipated. Shaymin and Eon used Axle's distraction to attack themselves, Eon using Quick Attack to close the gap quickly with Shaymin using Air Slash close behind. The combination of the five attacks blew Rayquaza away and sent it over the edge of the clouds.

"Is…it over?" Eon asked.

At the edge of the clouds, in the opposite direction from where Rayquaza fell, a bright flash of light lit up the area. When the light finally died down, a strange instrument appeared. It was white and silver like the clouds, with sings on the top of it. The object had the look of a mini-piano as well, with the half-note pads being blue instead of the usual black. All in all, it looked strange, but the team couldn't help but look on it with wonder.

"So…this is it then," Axle said. "One of the Seven Treasures. The Sky Melodica."

Shaymin and Axle both walked up to the object in a trance-like state. Eon stayed behind, looking between her friends and the Sky Melodica. She wasn't in as much of a trance-like state as her two friends, as such she was the first to notice something was wrong. Her fears were confirmed when she, and only she, heard the roar coming from behind them.

Eon quickly looked back and saw Rayquaza flying back over the clouds. " **I warned you that I would not let you take one of the Seven Treasures!"** Rayquaza yelled with a roar. " **With the last bit of my power, I will send you to your grave!** "

Rayquaza quickly built up a large amount of power in its maw, so much so that it caused shockwaves to come from the legendary Pokémon. Eon shook when she felt that power and she quickly looked over in concern to her teammates. Despite all that happened, it seemed that both their attention was still on the Sky Melodica, with Shaymin now holding it in front of their faces. They were completely oblivious to the attack that was coming.

"Shaymin, Axle, we need to scatter!" Eon called out desperately to her friends, but it was to no avail. Neither of them gave any indication that they even heard her.

" **Now fall, you greedy land dwellers!"** Rayquaza called out before firing its Hyper Beam straight at Axle and Shaymin.

Time seemed to slow down for Eon. She watched as Rayquaza pushed its head forward as it attacked. She noticed Axle and Shaymin, still in their dream-like stupor and unlikely to dodge anything anytime soon. She could feel her own heart pound and the fear take over her body. Her mind, her limbs, nearly every part of her told her to run, to run away as fast as possible with the slight possibility that if she ran to the side, she would be able to escape.

But another part of her told her no. The part of her that was silent for most of her life. The part of her that became louder when she first met Axle. The part of her that let her fight through the worst situations when she wanted to run. That part of her was telling her something else. Something downright stupid. And Eon ran with that part of her anyways.

So without a moment's hesitation, Eon used Quick Attack to gain enough speed to stand in front of Axle and Shaymin. While they were unconscious to the coming threat, Eon ran as close to the two of them as possible and blocked as much of them as possible. With dignity, Eon turned around and faced the powerful Hyper Beam as the attack finally reached the three and consumed all three of them.


	3. Numb

Numb. That was the best description for how Axle felt. Numb.

He was physically numb, as despite the fact that both his right arm and the lower half of his back were covered in gauze soaked in Oran Juices applied directly to the cuts in his skin, he felt nothing. The stinging pain that he would normally be feeling from having those bandages directly applied to open wounds was not there.

He was mentally numb, as he didn't even know where he was. The riolu could somewhat tell that he was in an earthy brown room but beyond that nothing. He wasn't even completely sure how he got there. The last he remembered was finding the Sky Melodica on Sky Stairway. Then…

"Eon, Shaymin," Axle mumbled to himself, though he wasn't quite sure why. Something was nagging him in the back of the mind, something big, something bad.

"Axle?" a chiming voice asked him.

Axle slowly looked up. "C-chimecho?" Axle asked.

"Oh good, you're awake," the wind-chime Pokémon said, relief strong in her voice, as she floated closer to Axle.

"Chimecho, what happened?" Axle asked. He tried to get up, but after his face contorted in pain from the effort Chimecho immediately used some of her psychic power to gently push Axle back down.

"Be careful Axle," Chimecho said. "You really shouldn't be trying to move anywhere right now. You're still really weak."

"Weak from what?" Axle asked.

"You…can't remember?" Chimecho asked.

Axle shook his head. "I…know something bad happened, Chimecho. I don't know what it is, but I know something bad happened. What happened? Where are Eon and Shaymin?"

Chimecho sighed and looked away. "…We're…not completely sure either," Chimecho said. "At least, we're not sure what happened to you guys. When we last saw the three of you, you guys just suddenly popped up in the middle of the guild looking…how you did. You really surprised us all. Actually, I was kind of hoping you would be able to tell us what happened to you."

Axle looked to the floor. "I…the last thing I remember is exploring the Sky Stairway," Axle said. "We got to the top, beat the legendary Pokémon Rayquaza, got the Sky Melodica, and then…"

"I've got an idea," Chimecho said. "Just give me a second…"

Chimecho floated out of the room for a bit leaving Axle cold and alone. He sat there for what felt like an eternity while he waited for Chimecho to come back and help him get the answers that were currently escaping him. Still though, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Eventually Chimecho floated back carrying with her using her psychic powers the Sky Melodica. "It might not work, but if you touch this you might get a Dimensional Scream and see the past," Chimecho told him. "It might show you what happened when you guys got this. But Axle…be careful please. I don't want you to hurt yourself with what you see."

"I'll be fine," Axle said.

"I'm trusting that for now," Chimecho said. "Knowing you, it'll be worse for you if you don't know. But still…"

Chimecho floated over the Sky Melodica and Axle touched the cold silver surface with his good arm. Axle closed his eyes and concentrated, and it wasn't long until the usual headache signaling Axle's special ability was activating. The riolu took deep breaths to make it less painful and waited until his vision became blank and he felt what could be best described as a thin line piercing his brain. Then a vision appeared before him.

 _Eon's yelling was the first thing Axle heard from his dimensional scream. "Shaymin, Axle, we need to scatter now!"_

 _Axle finally got vision of what happened and that's when he noticed it. Behind Eon as she was yelling at Past-Axle and Shaymin was Rayqauza. The Legendary Pokémon was charging up a Hyper Beam, the attack that scared Eon the most when she talked about him before the fight. Axle also noticed that neither his past-self nor Shaymin seemed to hear the eevee nor did they notice Rayquaza's attack coming in._

 _Then Rayquaza fired his attack. Axle watched as his past-self did nothing to avoid the attack. He watched as Eon ran forward to where the two of them were standing. He watched as Eon, despite her small stature, tried to block both of them from the attack. The riolu's Dimensional Scream ended there, but like a light he suddenly remembered everything else that happened after that._

"I…remember now," Axle said as his eyes snapped open. "I felt a searing pain and heard Eon yell. I had to close my eyes so I wasn't sure what it was or what was happening so that scream… Then, when I opened my eyes again, that's when I saw it."

Axle began shaking and his eyes became unfocused. "Eon…was on the floor. There was blood everywhere. He scarf was a tattered mess and our bag was broken open, scattering items everywhere. She was missing fur and there was so much red. And Shaymin…wasn't any better. When Eon blocked us from the attack, she wasn't really able to keep both of us safe. She's only half my size. She was too small. So…she chose…to prioritize me."

Subconsciously changing the subject Axle said. "I…grabbed an Escape Orb immediately and used it as fast as possible. All I was thinking about was taking her back to the guild. So I used it. And then…"

"That's what brought you here," Chimecho finished for him. "What attack hit you exactly and from what Pokémon?"

"Rayquaza," Axle said breathlessly. "Hyper Beam."

Chimecho flinched when she heard that.

"Chimecho, where are Eon and Shaymin?" Axle asked. "How are they?"

"They're…alive," Chimecho said hesitantly.

"Chimecho," Axle growled.

Chimecho sighed. "Sorry. They're your friends and I know you're worried about their health," Chimecho said. "I'll…tell you the truth, but I'm sorry. It's not a really pleasant one."

Chimecho continued. "When you brought them here, they both were suffering severe wounds. I immediately got to work and tried to close them up the best I could. Some of their wounds were too deep though, so the best I could do was wrap them. Still, they both lost a lot of blood. For a while I've had to constantly keep changing the gauze I wrapped them in to keep it from getting infected. It…hasn't been pleasant. I haven't even been able to give them an examination yet, since I've been too busy patching them up."

"Are they going to…?" Axle asked.

"Hopefully no," Chimecho said, "But they are in critical condition. The good news is we were able to contact the Exploration Team Federation and they're sending expert help immediately. Hopefully they'll get here soon. Once there here and we're able to give the two a proper examination, I'll give you more information."

Axle stopped listening at the words 'critical condition.' The world around him was once again closed off, and Axle could feel nothing again. No sadness or grief, no happiness or joy, absolutely nothing. It was like a void.

For what could have been days, weeks, months, or maybe just hours, Axle continued to be like this: In a state of unconscious consciousness, unaware of his surroundings or what was going on or even how much time had passed. He stayed there where Chimecho left him sitting in that exact same position. He didn't really sleep, but he couldn't exactly be considered awake either.

At some point in time though, Chimecho once again entered the room holding a bowl of fruit. "Axle," she called out to get Axle's attention.

Axle looked up at Chimecho. "…Thanks," Axle said softly.

Axle began eating the bowl of fruit starting with an Oran Berry. He munched it slowly and with disinterest, the riolu not even feeling particularly hungry at the moment. Still, Chimecho waited there while Axle was eating despite how slow it was going.

"Good, I'm glad to see you're eating," Chimecho mumbled to herself while she watched the fighting-type.

Axle paused for a moment. "How are Eon and Shaymin?" Axle asked. He wondered how many times he asked that question.

"Right now, I don't know," Chimecho admitted. "I do have good news though. The Exploration Team Federation's top healers are here already and are working on the two right now. With any luck in an hour or two they'll be able to stabilize the two so we can get them on the road to recovery."

Chimecho chimed. "So don't worry and eat up Axle," she said cheerfully. "Your team will be back together and exploring again in no-time."

"That's great," Axle said with the emotion of a rock. Axle continued to eat the berries laid out for him, this time picking off a Pecha Berry, but before he continued eating he asked, "Has there ever been a case this bad before?"

"Here…no, or at least not since I became the guild's medic," Chimecho admitted. "But there are more Exploration Teams and more explorers than the ones on this small town so I'm sure _something_ like this had to have happened before. Heck, they may have even handled worse cases with success before this. Don't worry a bit about it."

"Ok," Axle said despondently.

Axle continued to eat slowly, while Chimecho floated to Axle's side and watched over him. They continued to do so for a while, Axle getting through most of his bowl of fruit in the time. He wasn't able to finish the entire bowl of fruit though before both he and Chimecho heard footsteps and two Pokémon walked into the room. Axle didn't bother looking up, but Chimecho did.

"Chimecho."

"Oh, it's you two." Chimecho looked at Axle. "Axle, those two are Alakazam and Audino. There two of the Pokémon that are working on your teammates right now."

"Audino?" Axle asked.

Axle finally looked up to see the two Pokémon that walked in. The Pokémon on the right was a yellow bipedal Pokémon holding two spoons in its arms with scrawny arms and chest, a yellow mustache-like part below his nose, and a purple star on his forehead. That one Axle recognized as Alakazam.

The second one though was one Axle didn't recognize. It was bipedal as well and had a cream-colored body outlined by pink with blue eyes and a white puffy tail. As Axle stared at it he realized more and more that he had never seen that type of Pokémon before.

"You're Audino?" Axle asked.

"Yeah, that's me," Audino said. "My species isn't native to this region, which is why you probably haven't seen a Pokémon like me before."

"You can chat about this later," Alakazam interrupted Audino. "We have more important things currently."

Audino sighed. "Yeah, you're right, but that doesn't mean you have to be pushy." Looking at Axle, Audino said. "Anyways, you are part of the team that we're taking care of, right?"

"Yeah, that's right," Axle said. "I'm their leader and friend."

"Come with us," Alakazam said, turning away and walking out of the room.

"In…less harsh terms: you're allowed to see your friends for a short bit," Audino said. "They're still in a coma, so you won't be able to talk to them, but we're done working on them for now. Just be sure to be careful not to cause a disturbance while in there."

"Thanks," Axle said half-heartedly.

"Thank you for giving him this chance ma'am," Chimecho said quickly to cover up Axle's emotionless response. "He's still recovering, which is why he can't really express how happy he is."

"I understand," Audino said. "Oh, and by the way? I'm a guy, just so you know."

Chimecho blushed and floated back in surprise while Axle still sat there with the same emotionless expression.

"I'll forgive you for the misunderstanding though," Audino finished. "I'm used to that mistake by now. Anyways, if you two would follow me."

Audino left the room with Chimecho soon following him. Axle was the last to leave, as he was slow to get up and start following them. He walked slowly and almost thoughtlessly, just keeping an eye on Chimecho and Audino. His movements were stiff, yet Axle either didn't feel the pain or completely ignored it as he walked.

The three of them eventually entered the infirmary where Alakazam was waiting for them. Audino and Chimecho walked in first, but then they both went to the side to allow Axle room to walk in and see his partners. Axle did, though he did so hesitantly at first. The riolu shuddered a little as he walked in.

 _So…this is it,_ Axle thought. _Now…I get to see them again._

"Well, here you are Axle," Audino said. "Here are your friends."

Axle walked forward and finally saw his two friends. Both of them were laying on white sheets facing each other, just a few inches apart. Their eyes were closed and their mouths were turned down into a frown. Axle couldn't tell by just one glance whether they were asleep or in a coma, he'd prefer the former but feared the latter was true.

Shaymin looked the best out of the two of them. He was back in his Land Forme now, only he was missing one of the two pink flowers that usually adorn the sides of his head: the left one. The left side of his body was the one that was mostly scarred, with singed black grass-like fur on the left side of his back and the left side of his body wrapped in white paper. They had him next to the window where for a little bit of the day light would shine on him to help him heal.

Eon on the other hand was much worse. Wrapped around Eon's head and around her body was clean white gauze, making her almost look like a mummy. Beyond that, patches of fur were missing all over her body, to the point where there was more skin showing then fur. Along several parts of her skin were also cuts that weren't bleeding, but still red. The patches of fur that were still there were all burnt by the attack that hit her. Finally, unlike Shaymin who occasionally shuddered, Eon was completely motionless on the ground.

"So, what's the status on these two?" Chimecho asked from somewhere behind Axle.

"They're both still alive," Audino said. "That's the most important part. We also managed to stop the bleeding for the most part. We haven't been able to take care of most of the burns they got, but those were of a lower priority. We'll still need to keep working on them, but for now we're pretty sure we have those two stabilized. They're actually pretty lucky, to be honest. The attack could have done a lot more damage."

"And the bad news?" Chimecho asked. "I think Axle deserves to know that as well."

Axle turned around to look at the trio behind him when he heard that.

"Didn't think everything would turn up all sunshine and rainbows after what happened to them, did you?" Alakazam asked. "Good. You're smart."

Alakazam looked directly at Axle. "Audino should have said that we have them stabilized for now. With the trauma that the two suffered and how much pain they must be in, it's likely that either one of them could suffer a relapse at any moment. Neither of them have avoided death yet."

"Good to know," Axle mumbled.

"That's not all," Alakazam said. "Assuming they do recover, I wouldn't bet on a full recovery. The shaymin has the likeliest chance, since he didn't take the full blast of the Hyper Beam, just most of it. But the eevee did take the full brunt of one of the most powerful attacks from one of the most powerful Pokémon in existence. Assuming she survives, she will most likely be crippled for the rest of her life. I highly doubt your eevee friend will be able to explore ever again."

At those words, Axle fell down to his knee and paws. After being numb and emotionless for a while the floodgates burst. Sorrow and pain took hold of him, dragging the bright white infirmity into darkness.


	4. Useless

"So Axle, how are you feeling today?" Chimecho asked the next morning.

Axle woke up to the sound of Chimecho's voice. After a few groggy seconds of figuring out where he was, the riolu got up off his bed and sat down in the hay, taking care not to use his damaged arm. After a couple of sleepy seconds for Axle to fully wake up, he looked at Chimecho.

"How are Eon and Shaymin?" Axle first asked, completely ignoring Chimecho's inquiry.

"They're still fine," Chimecho said. "Neither of them have gotten out of their coma yet, but at the same time their health hasn't gotten any worse either. I believe Alakazam told me that they're working on Eon and Shaymin's burns today. That should help get rid of a lot of the pain their feeling."

Axle looked to the floor, memories of yesterday still fresh in his mind. "Chimecho, do you Alakazam was right?" Axle asked the wind-chime Pokémon. "Do you think Eon might actually…be unable to explore again?"

Chimecho looked down. "Honestly Axle I wish I could assure you," the psychic-type said. "But…Alakazam is an expert at diagnostics. He's able to detect things that no other Pokémon is able to." Chimecho shook her head. "But remember, he said she has a chance of being crippled. That means she has a chance of being healed! There's still hope for her yet! Don't give up yet, Axle!"

Axle didn't look convinced. He instead stared wide-eyed into the floor without any noise. Chimecho looked over him, hoping for some reaction, but she ended up getting nothing from the shell-shocked fighting-type. Chimecho sighed before floating higher into the sky.

"Well, I have to go now," Chimecho said. "I have work to do. Between my normal work and helping out with the Federation's healers, I don't have much time to stick around."

Axle finally looked up again. "Is there…anything I can do to help?" Axle asked. "Anything at all?"

"I'm not the Pokémon you want to ask that," Chimecho said with a shake of her head. "You'd have to try asking the healers when they're not working on your friends. But…considering your arm…"

Axle looked at his still fully cast right arm. "Give that about a day or two more and you'll be able to use that arm again, but until then, your dominant arm is useless," Chimecho said. "You won't even be cleared for exploring until then, maybe a bit later depending on your health."

"So…I'm pretty much useless then?" Axle asked, still looking at his arm. "Great."

"Don't think of it that way," Chimecho said. "Think of it as a time to rest and relax. Your friends will be fine. We've got the professionals working on them. So don't worry, sit back, relax a bit. Maybe take a walk through town if you're feeling up to it. Chat with a few of the locals and take your mind of things."

Axle was silent, so Chimecho took that as an excuse to make her leave. Once Chimecho left for the room Axle looked back up at the hallway she left through. He sighed, continuing to stare at that spot long after Chimecho finally left his vision.

"Rest and relax," Axle mumbled. "Yeah right. I wish. After seeing those two…there's no way I can do anything even close to resting or relaxing."

Felling restless, Axle got out of his bed and walked off to the infirmary. Like yesterday, his steps were long and slow, though he made it to the infirmary on the other side of the guild a bit faster than he did previously. Unfortunately, as the riolu noticed when he got close to the room where his two friends were held, the alakazam from earlier was standing directly in front of the door. He had his eyes closed, a frown on his face, and his arms crossed around his body, arms clenched around his spoons. Axle hesitated, memories of Alakazam's cross nature from yesterday still fresh in his mind, before walking up to the door. The riolu wasn't about to let that stop his inquiry.

"Alakazam," Axle said when he got close enough to the PSI-Pokémon.

Alakazam opened his right eye and looked down at Axle. "Your friends are currently being treated," the psychic-type said. "Nobody, including you, are allowed in while the doctors are working."

"That's not why I'm here," Axle said. "I want to know if there's any way I can help."

"Stay quiet, stay out of the way, don't get hurt to divide our attention," Alakazam said. "That's how you can help."

Nonplussed, Axle took a step back and thought about what to say next. "I mean…do you have anything I can do?"

"I just told you what to do." Alakazam once again closed his eye.

"I mean something active!" Axle yelled, his left paw clenching. "I can't just sit here while my friends are in danger! So please! I need to do something!"

"No, you really don't," Alakazam said, still calm despite Axle's badgering. "I'm doing nothing but waiting here, yet you don't see me badgering anyone."

"What if it was your friends in there?!" Axle asked.

"Then I would do the same thing I'm doing right now. Wait calmly and patiently. Making a fit of things isn't going to help anybody, certainly not your friends."

Axle reached the edge of his patience. "So if that's what you think then who the heck let a heartless creep like you become a doctor?! Why would you even want to become a doctor anyways if you don't care about anyone but yourself?!"

"Listen kid," Alakazam said, both his eyes finally opening up. The psychic-type straightened himself up, returned his arms to his sides, and glared down at the riolu below him. "I've been in this job for years. I have told Pokémon that their loved ones are pretty much dead and there's nothing we can do about it. I have told Pokémon for longer than you've been alive that their only hope is to wait for a miracle. I've had to diagnose Pokémon and then wait not knowing whether they'll live or die. Pokémon trust us and we can't always help them."

"Nothing you say will faze me. Nothing you can do will affect me. If I let the little things bother me then I would have snapped years ago. I have been called worse things by more influential Pokémon than you and I took it all. Compared to that, you're just a two-year-old throwing a little tantrum at things that they can't control."

"So you know what: you're just going to have to live with that. Whether your friends live or die or become crippled will depend entirely on stuff outside of our control. Unless you find some sort of magic medicine that can cure the toughest of wounds, there is nothing you can do but let fate decide what to do with your friends. Until then, you sitting here complaining is not helping them at all. So unless you want me to forcefully remove you from my presence, I'd recommend going off and recovering yourself."

Alakazam returned to his earlier position in front of the Infirmary door, slumped over, arms crossed, eyes closed. Axle clenched his left arm, ready to use a Shadow Claw on the psychic-type, feeling the dark claws already forming, but after a couple of seconds, Axle thought better of it. He unclenched his hand and the claws of darkness dissipated as well.

"Just…try and make sure they're alright," Axle said. "I don't care if you're not directly in charge of them! Just…do what you can."

Without waiting for a response from Alakazam, Axle walked away.

The feeling of helplessness engulfed Axle as he walked through the guild back to the crew rooms where he would spend another night with his friends still in the infirmary. The riolu punched the dirt wall of the guild with his right fist, though the attack didn't make him feel any different. If anything, it just increased the headache he already had. He eventually sighed before continuing to his old room in a slump.

As Axle entered the room, he looked over it in detail for the first time since he had been staying in it after the accident. The crew room looked pretty much exactly how he first saw it when he and his partner first joined Wigglytuff's Guild. The two hay beds where Eon and he used to sleep looked the same, the window showing the clear blue sky was the same, even the vines that crawled around the top of the room was the same. Axle felt a slight tear come to his eye as he looked over the room.

" _So…this is our room, is it?"_

Axle immediately turned around when he heard the familiar voice. There he saw her. Eon, looking wide-eyed as she glanced around the room, as if this was her first time seeing it. Axle's mouth dropped open when he saw her, completely fine, no hint of bandages or battle damage or anything of the sort. She almost looked exactly the same as when he first met her.

"E-Eon?" Axle asked as he reached his right paw out to her.

Eon walked forward…and went directly through Axle as if he wasn't there. Axle's extended right arm pulled back to his chest and he stood there for a few seconds, unable to comprehend what just happened. He immediately turned around to see Eon standing on her old bed, inspecting it with her paws with a smile on her face.

" _Oh cool, we even get our own beds," Eon said cheerfully._

Axle's ears twitched at that line and it was at that point he realized it.

 _This…I'm remembering the day we first came to this guild,_ Axle thought. _When Eon and I first came into this room_.

" _We should probably get some sleep now," Eon said. "Tomorrow's going to be a big day for us Axle. Our first day as trainees for Wigglytuff's guild. Do you know what that means Axle?" Eon looked him in the eye and gave him a big smile. "Tomorrow we're going to take our first step to becoming explorers! Soon we'll be able to explore the world, learn new things about ancient civilizations, find lots of treasure! It'll be great!"_

 _Yeah, I remember how exited Eon was,_ Axle thought as he continued to stare at the non-existent eevee. _That night she could hardly sleep. She kept tossing and turning in her bed. That was probably the only time her bed has ever been messier than mine in the morning. Heh…that was also the morning we discovered that we are forcefully waken up by Loudred at the crack of morning._

The memory version of Eon dissolved into nothingness and in its place he saw two figures. Eon was once again there, standing just a couple steps away from her bed. When Axle saw her he noticed that she looked a bit older, if only just slightly. She had a little more maturity in her eyes when he saw her, but at the same time that came with a little more weariness. At this point, she was closer to the Eon he knew.

Axle followed her eyes and noticed Shaymin. He was in his Sky Forme and looking outside the window of their room. The gratitude Pokémon's eyes were wide and bright as he watched the sun outside of their room. He had a very mystified look in his face, one that brought a pain to Axle's heart.

" _So, this is where you two slept while you guys were at this guild, huh?" Shaymin asked as he turned back to look at Eon._

" _Yeah, pretty much," Eon answered him. "It was pretty nice and cozy around here, though it could get really damp during rainy days. That and being woken up by Loudred wasn't really that fun."_

 _Shaymin smirked a smirk Axle was all too familiar with. "Yeah, I bet you two got real nice and cozy here. Being alone. In a room together. Unsupervised. Yep, bet you two got nice and cozy."_

Axle groaned at that. In hindsight, he kinda regretted Eon's decision to give Shaymin a tour of the guild. Since then Shaymin would not be deterred in his idea that Axle and Eon were mates. Though Axle quickly changed his mind when he saw what happened next.

 _Shaymin was once again looking out the window. "Anyways, thanks you guys," he said. "You know, for letting me join your team and all. It's just, the way you guys explored, how you were friendly to everyone you could on the way despite simultaneously competing for the treasure, the stories you told me on the way there. It reminds me of someone I used to know. And you know what? It sort of put a spark in me for adventure." Shaymin turned back around to look at Eon. "Seriously, I can't wait to go out there and explore the world with you guys. See new places, experience new things. It's going to be a blast out there, and I'm glad you guys are giving me this opportunity."_

" _We're glad to have you," Eon responded happily._

The vison in front of him once again dissolved and Axle fell to his knees. _Eon…Shaymin…I'm so sorry,_ Axle thought. _Our team might not every be able to go out exploring the same way ever again and there's nothing I can do about it. I can't do anything…but wait here and let fate take its course._

 _Fate._

Axle clenched his hand at that word. Fate. It wasn't a word Axle thought about that often, if at all. It didn't even really register with him when he heard Alakazam say it. But as he actually put some thought into that word, his mind tunneled back through his memory to when that word meant the most to him.

 _Fate. It was once this world's fate to be covered in darkness, time completely stopped and the planet slowly dying,_ Axle thought as he thought back. _I came from that darkened future with the idea that it needed to change. I wasn't content with the fate of the world before, being completely willing to risk my life to change it. And I did, with the help of my partner from the future, Grovyle, and my partner from this time, Eon. We changed fate and now all the Pokémon of this world have a bright future to look forward to._

Axle got off his knees and stood up straighter. _It was also my fate to disappear after changing the fate of the world. The future I come from no longer exists, so I should have faded to existence along with it. But, thanks to a miracle, I'm back. That fate was averted too. I may not be able to evolve, thanks to the fact that I'm a living time paradox, but I can live here._

 _So why should I care about fate? It doesn't matter what_ fate _has in store for my partners. I can change it, and I will. I don't know how, nor do I care. I'm not going to just sit here helplessly and wait! I'll save you guys!_

With that, the riolu turned around and walked out of the crew room, a plan forming in his mind.


	5. Painful Awakening

"Unnnnnufffff," groaned a small eevee as she slowly gained consciousness. "Ugg…urff."

In Eon's entire exploration carrier, she had felt many days of complete exhaustion and/or extreme agony. She had been in many fights, some won and some lost, some of which happened several times in a row. She had times where she felt ready to collapse at a moment's notice due to how exhausted or how much pain she was in.

However, how she felt that day took the cake. Her entire body screamed in torment, she felt like a billion fiery needles were poking into her and would not let out. Her body felt completely immobile and she couldn't get a single muscle to work right to do anything. All she could do was lie there in pain.

The eevee eventually managed to slowly open one eye, her right eye specifically, and used that to look around. Unfortunately she was only able to half-open it, so she wasn't able to see much at all. The Evolution Pokémon let out another groan, this time a more purposeful one, hoping that someone was in the room with her and could hear her.

"Oh!"

The eevee's hopes were well founded, as she heard a familiar voice chime out to her. "Ch-chimecho?" the eevee groaned out, feeling the pain from even trying to talk. "Is that…you?"

"Yeah, it's me!" Chimecho said. "Eon, you're awake! I can't believe it! You're actually awake!"

"Yeah…I guess sooooooo…" Eon trailed off and sharply closed her one open eye.

"Oh my gosh, are you ok?!" Chimecho asked her. "How do you feel?"

"Horrible," Eon answered. "It…hurts everywhere. I can't open my left eye, I can barely open my right. I feel so baurrrrrfffff."

"Just calm down Eon," Chimecho said. "Let's take things slowly. You're in the infirmary right now. Do you remember how you got here? Don't say anything, don't move, just blink once for yes, twice for no."

Eon paused for a moment, trying to think of what could have possible got here in the position she was in. Despite her best attempts though, her thoughts were clouded by the pain that permeated all throughout her body. Eon let out another groan as she gained a headache trying to think of what happened. She eventually gave up and settled for blinking twice.

"No then. Should have figured." Eon still couldn't see, but she felt a smooth, silky appendage touch her shoulder. "Listen Eon, I'll explain what's been happening later. For now though, you need some serious rest. Just know that you're safe and in good hands. Rest easy Eon, and when you're better I'll explain everything."

"…Axle? …Shaymin?" Eon asked.

"They're both in good hands too," Chimecho assured her. "I'll tell you all about both of them when you're a little better, ok?"

With that, Eon gave into what the pain she was feeling had told her this entire time and she lost awareness of the world around her.

An immeasurable amount of time later, Eon was finally able to regain consciousness once again. Like before, as soon as she regained feeling she clenched her jaw in pain, though this time she did the best she could to ignore it. She even managed to open both her eyes this time to take a look around the place and see where she was.

Eon, from her line of sight, was able to see that she was in a room covered in white sheets, blocking out the normally brown coloring of dirt, wood, and bricks that the guild was built out of. She herself was lying on a clean white sheet. Eon still couldn't move her head to look around, but from her position she could see one doctor, a Pokémon she didn't immediately recognize.

"H-hello over there," Eon called out to the Pokémon in front of her. She wanted to be louder, but wasn't able to.

The Pokémon looked over at her.

"Oh, you're awake," the Pokémon said. "I heard from Chimecho that you already woke up before, but I didn't figure you'd wake up again so quickly."

"Who are you?" Eon asked.

"Oh sorry," the Pokémon said. He walked closer. "My name is Audino. I'm one of your doctors."

"Audino?" Eon asked. "I've…never heard of a Pokémon like you before."

"Your friend said the same thing," Audino said warmly. "The riolu…his name was Axle, right? Anyways, the riolu said the same thing when he first met me. Like I told him, my species isn't really native to this region."

"So…Axle's alright?" Eon asked. Despite the pain she was in, knowing her friend was fine at least lessened the burden in her heart.

"He got severe burns and cuts to his right arm and has been stuck in a cast over the last several days, but he should be fine," Audino answered her. "If he's lucky, he might even be able to remove that cast within a few days."

Eon closed her eyes and smiled contently. "That's…good to hear," she said. "I'm glad to hear that. I was worried…worried? Wait…I was worried? Worried about him…because…"

Eon's eyes snapped open and her head lifted up. She felt her heart beat a million beats per minute and all her muscles tensed up. The fear that she had forgotten about for so long suddenly once again welled up inside of her.

"Rayquaza! Hyper Beam! Axle! Shaymin!" Eon yelled and she immediately tried getting up. Unfortunately for her, all she managed to do was painfully fall back on her stomach and shake and moan from the increased pain she gave herself. Audino immediately ran up to her and threw a Heal Pulse her direction, his eyes closed, his palms together, and the sensors on his ears extending.

Once he was done, Audino stood back up and said, "Hey, careful now. You really, **really** don't need to be exerting yourself now."

"Sorry," Eon answered with a groan. "So…Axle really is alright then, right?"

"Yeah," Audino answered her. "The worst that could happen to him is his right arm not working as well as it used to anymore. Riolu are typically ambidextrous though so if that does happen he could just use his left. It'll take a bit to get used to, but nothing bad."

"Actually…Axle prefers his right," Eon mentioned.

"Oh," Audino said, taking a step back as he did. "That's…kinda strange. I've never heard of a Riolu's discipline that preferences their right."

"It's…a long story," Eon said and that's all she said about it. She didn't have the energy or desire to tell Audino about Axle's human origins right now.

"Well…regardless," Audino said. "Axle will be just fine."

"And Shaymin…?" Eon asked.

"Well…you and Shaymin…" Audino said, trailing off at the end.

"You don't have good news, do you?" Eon asked.

"You and Shaymin are currently stable," Audino said, his voice still trailing off.

"How bad is it?" Eon asked, knowing exactly why Audino was trailing off like that. "I understand why you're hesitant, but please tell me. I don't care how bad it is, I want to know. Especially for Shaymin. He's my friend and I want to know what his condition is."

Audino sighed. "Fine, if you really want. Just don't take it too hard. I don't want you to overexert yourself over something outside of your control."

Audino walked over somewhere to Eon's right, though thanks to her inability to move at the moment, the eevee wasn't able to see him. "I know you can't see me, but Shaymin is over here. We've currently got him next to the window, soaking up sunlight. But while you've finally gotten out of your coma, Shaymin is still in his. For a Mythical and a grass-type, I'm both surprised and worried about this. Between you he should have woken up first."

"B-but I thought I blocked him!" Eon said.

Audino once again entered her vision. "You are a small eevee," Audino told her. "Did you think you'd be able to block two Pokémon at once? According to what we heard, when you tried blocking your friends you ended up prioritizing the riolu, Axle. Which was smart by the way. A Mythical Pokémon will fare much better against an attack than a basic Pokémon. Speaking of which, you two do know that the evolution springs are working again, right? The two of you can evolve at any time. And if Axle were a lucario, he wouldn't even need to worry about an attack like that."

Eon sighed a very melancholy sigh. "Don't ask," she said. "Please, just don't ask. And if you ever see Axle, don't ask him either."

"Hmm…anyways Shaymin's left side got the brunt of the blast, more so than his right. He, looks pretty bad to be honest. His left flower is burnt off, his left side is severely burnt, and as I said before, he hasn't woken up yet. He's not dead, but I'm worried about his recovery in that case. Unfortunately, we really don't know much about shaymin at all, so we're not sure if this is normal, whether we should be worried, really anything. He's a Mythical Pokémon, sure, but he's also nowhere on the level of someone like Zekrom or Dialga."

"Shaymin's strong. He'll be fine." Eon hesitated for a moment, letting the information about Shaymin sink in while comparing it to what she must have went through, before asking the question. "…And…me?"

"You…well you obviously got the worst of it," Audino said. "I mean, Shaymin was slightly blocked by you. That means you took the full blast from the Hyper Beam."

"So then how bad am I?" Eon asked. "I mean, I'm up now. I'm out of my coma. That has to be something, right?"

"Well aside from the fact that you're only 'fine' and awake right now because your body is working way too hard to block out the pain for you, and it's possible you might suffer a relapse at any time," Audino said.

"Which would…kill me right?" Eon asked.

"You're not out of the woods yet," was the only thing Audino said.

"Anyways, Eon…you've noticed you've had a hard time moving, right?" Audino asked. "…Well that might…be permanent. Even if you survive, you're…highly likely to become crippled."

"I…am?" Eon asked. She looked down at her two immobile paws.

"Possibly," Audino said. "It depends. We're not sure yet. It'll mostly depend on how well you heal from your blow. So don't worry about it yet. Stay calm and let us do our thing, and we'll try and give you the best chance for recovery."

"But if I'm not able to…" Eon mumbled.

"Yeah…being crippled will make it a little hard to continue on with your explorations," Audino said, trying to chuckle as if it was a joke. He quickly realized what he said though, so afterwards he quickly said, "Sorry, that was in bad taste."

"No, it's ok," Eon said. "I understand you're just trying to cheer me up."

"…Are you going to be ok?" Audino asked. "I don't want to cause you any undue stress. Just relax and let us take care of things."

"How did Axle take it?" Eon asked.

"About as well as you can guess," Audino said. "For now though, you should worry about yourself more than him. You're the one that needs to recover."

"…Ok I guess," Eon said, closing her eyes. "But please…can you tell Axle not to worry about me? That I'm going to keep fighting? I'm worried about what he'll do if he's too worried about me."

"Yeah, I will," Audino said. "You be sure to get some rest now."

"I…will," Eon said before falling fast asleep.


	6. New Resolve

Words upon words flew from the page into Axle's mind has he sped read through his fifth book from the Guild's library that day. He flipped through the pages of the blue book he was reading, constantly on the lookout for anything that caught his attention, anything that interested him, anything that could possibly save his friends from their fate.

Sadly though, this book didn't give Axle the information he needed, so he sat it down on the table where the other five books he read was. Axle sighed, falling back into the brown hay-couch he was sitting on, and sat there for a few seconds. Before long though, Axle went back up to another brown shelf, grabbed a green-bound book, and went back to the couch to continue his reading.

"Let's see if this one will give me what I need," Axle mumbled. "But I highly doubt it."

Axle continued reading for a while, going from page to page, until he eventually heard soft steps coming towards his direction. Axle looked up from his book to see one of his guild friends, Sunflora. The riolu gave a couple of guesses as to why Sunflora was there and those guesses lead him to put down his book.

"It's dinner time," Sunflora said.

"So, it's your job to tell me that today," Axle said.

Sunflora looked down. "S-sorry," she said.

"No, it's ok," Axle said. He stood up, grabbing the book he was reading and placed it back on the shelf he found it. "Thanks for telling me. I need to keep eating to get up my strength." Axle looked down to his right arm, cast taken off it but still stiff and difficult to move. "This thing will be fixed soon and I'll finally be able to go on explorations again. I can actually do something then."

Sunflora put one of her leafy hands on Axle's shoulder. "I'm…sorry Axle," the Sun Pokémon said. "Eon is my friend too so…I'm not going to say I know what you're going through but…"

"You don't need to be so hesitant," Axle said calmly. "I'm not the only one allowed to feel sorry about what's happening to Eon. She's made more friends than just me. Eon just has that type of personality." Axle clenched his left paw to keep himself from crying. "Anyways, thanks."

"You've been looking for a way to help right?" Sunflora asked. "Have you found anything yet?"

"No, but then again, what I'm looking for isn't exactly conventional," Axle said. "Medical knowledge isn't exactly going to help me. I don't know enough about medicine or surgeries or anything like that for me to find something the healers don't know about. So I'm looking for something else."

Axle pointed a stiff right arm towards the books he just put back. "If I've learned anything from my explorations with Eon, there is a lot we don't know about the world and a lot of treasures that can do amazing things we've never heard about. That's what I'm looking for. I'm looking for something like the Gabite Fang or the Phione Dew, only instead of just curing sicknesses I need something that will keep Eon and Shaymin from dying and keep Eon from being crippled."

"My gosh, that sounds like some magic medicine," Sunflora said. "Do you think such a thing exists?"

"It has to," Axle said, shaking his head. "I can't say it does, but I can't give up. I have to find something or my friends…" Axle trailed off at the end.

"I wish I could help," Sunflora said. "The best I can think of though…is maybe the Legendary Pokemon Ho-Oh can help you."

Axle looked up at Sunflora. "The Legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh?" the riolu asked. "What type of Pokémon is that?"

"Honestly, I don't know, and it's only a legend," Sunflora said. "But there's an old legend that a large tower once burned down and three Pokémon died in the flames. It's said, though, that Ho-Oh resurrected those three Pokémon. It's also said that Ho-Oh can produce this amazing item that can heal six Pokémon at once, maybe even more. Oh my gosh, that sounds amazing if you think about it. I don't know how much truth there is to this, but if you happen to figure out where Ho-Oh is, then maybe it can help your friends."

"Ho-Oh, huh?" Axle said thoughtfully. "Do you have any other information about Ho-Oh?"

"Sorry Axle, but not really," Sunflora said. "But I heard the rumors around the Eastern Forest. Once you're finally cleared to go on explorations again, you can check it out. There might be a village there that can tell you more."

"Hmm…I think I will check it out," Axle said. "As soon as I can. This might be the breakthrough I need. Thanks Sunflora."

"No problem Axle," Sunflora responded. "Happy to help a fellow friend."

Both of them walked out of the library on their way to the dining room to eat. While they were on their way though, Axle stopped for a couple of seconds and looked towards the direction of the infirmary. Currently there was no-one in front of the door, no-one standing by, though Axle was pretty sure that someone must be in the room keeping watch on Eon and Shaymin.

"Eon, Shaymin, please hold on a little longer," Axle whispered to the room. "Stay strong for me. I'll be back to save you soon."

"Have you had a chance to talk to her yet?" Axle heard Sunflora ask from behind him. "I heard she woke up once."

Axle turned around and said, "No, I haven't. According to the healers, her condition worsened afterwards and she hasn't woken up since. They've got her stable now but she could go either way at any time. Both Eon and Shaymin are on the verge of life or death with the healers having done pretty much all they can."

Axle felt a painful longing in his heart as he looked towards the door. Axle clenched his left paw again before walking away from the room before his heart broke anymore. Instead he turned his sadness to rage and furthered his vow to make sure both his friends are alright.

The next morning came swiftly for Axle after another sleepless night. As soon as Axle woke up he started his morning routine of stretching his right arm to test its flexibility. Axle twisted his arm around, and it still felt stiff, however Axle felt like he could fight battles with it.

 _At least, I'm pretty sure I can,_ Axle thought as he looked at his arm. _Honestly, I'm not completely sure. But Eon and Shaymin don't have the time for me to spend making sure I'm at 100%. I need to get out there and exploring now, before it's too late._

With one more flex of his paw, Axle left his room, his destination in mind.

After getting himself cleared by Chimecho, Axle walked the path towards Eastern Forest, his repaired X-Ray Specs snug on his forehead just in case he needed them. He started off well into the morning but by the time he reached his destination the sun already climbed it's highest and was starting to arc down. Despite the heat coming from the sun though, Axle felt a strange coldness as he walked closer to the forest.

 _Hmm…so this is the Eastern Forest,_ Axle thought as he walked over to the dense expanse of forest that sprawled across the scenery. _I've heard about this forest before a couple of times before. I'm pretty sure the only Mystery Dungeon here is Treeshroud Forest, so the forest should mostly be safe. Still…better be careful. I'm just looking for a village, not trouble._

Axle walked into the forest, seeing the area darken as he walked further and further into the forest. The trees themselves grew thicker and thicker as he walked in the forest. The path itself grew more and more narrow as well.

 _Hmm…_ Axle thought as he walked. _If I'm looking for a hidden village, sticking with the forest path probably won't help me too much. Problem is, if I'm not careful, I'll get myself lost here and end up in some random Mystery Dungeon or something. I'm going to have to figure out where I'm going, and fast._

So Axle stopped where he was standing and looked towards the tree to his immediate left. Axle quickly placed his left paw on the tree and closed his eyes. Axle calmed himself down and concentrated on trying to activate his special ability. And so Axle stood there for a few seconds, waiting, waiting, but the headache that signaled his ability activating didn't come. Axle waited a bit longer, tried to stay patient, but urgency kept him from staying there for too long.

"Great," Axle groaned to himself. "Of course my Dimensional Scream isn't working now. Why would it want to work for me when I need it?"

Axle once again placed his left paw on the tree, this time out of more annoyance than anything. He was starting to get a headache, and not the type of headache he wanted to get. Axle clenched his right arm into a fist and stared at the tree with anger.

"N-no, calm down," Axle said to himself. "Anger isn't going to help me save Eon or Shaymin. If my Dimensional Scream isn't going to work then I'll just have to do this the old fashioned way. …Even if Eon and Shaymin were always better at it than me."

Axle crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and began thinking. _Alright, so it's going to be off the beaten path, probably somewhere deep in the forest. At the same time though, the Pokémon in the village are going to have to be able to find it themselves if they need to leave for whatever reason. So there needs to be some sort of indication as to where the village is that those Pokémon can follow. Possibly some sort of hidden path or something. As for how I could find it…_

Axle's dog-ear-like sensors suddenly floated up as he tried to sense his surroundings. … _I'll need to walk around like this,_ Axle finished his thought. _I'll avoid any hostile auras and follow other auras. Hopefully if I don't find the village, I'll at least find someone who knows about Ho-Oh. Wish me luck, Eon._

Axle searched until he felt an aura that felt promising. It was around 10 o'clock from his position and required him to go through some trees. The riolu quickly ran to the trees and climbed in between them, giving himself some elevation and a path to go wherever he wanted. From his higher vantage the riolu was still unable to see much in the forest, but he could get a better read on the aura signature he first felt.

 _Still only one, but we'll see where they take me,_ Axle thought.

Axle jumped across the trees, using a combination of his instincts, flexibility, and agility, to keep himself from falling. Every once in a while Axle would steady himself on a stable part of a tree to check the aura he was following before continuing on his way. The riolu continued that way, getting closer and closer to the aura signature as he ran. And, after a few minutes of running across the treetops, Axle reached a point where he was right above his target.

Axle stopped for a moment to catch his breath and to look down at his target. He couldn't see his target due to the leaves from the tree blocking his path, but Axle knew he was close. While catching his breath, the riolu looked around the trees around him to see the quietest path to get back down.

"Young riolu, you may get down from there," a voice below Axle called out. "I know you're there and I'd rather not get stalked on my travels by some random shady character."

Axle nearly tripped out of the tree he was standing on. Once getting a more stable footing, Axle looked down with confusion. He thought to himself for a couple of seconds before deciding to take the less stealthy way and just jump down himself. Axle descended down quickly and landed hard on the ground. Unfortunately for him, the riolu instinctively landed using his right paw, which caused a large amount of pain to quake across his arm. His quickly stood up, his left arm shooting across his body to his right arm.

"That was a fool move," the voice from before said. Axle finally looked up to see what Pokémon he had been following the entire time was. It looked like a green condor with white, black and red tipped wings, a black ruff around its neck, red marks that looked like eyes around its chest, and two red feathered-crests. The riolu recognized easily that the Pokémon was a xatu.

"Falling from your height right on your arm was quite foolish," the xatu continued to chastise. "Especially since, by the looks of things, you have sustained an injury on that arm that you're still trying to recover."

"Sorry," Axle said. "Force of habit."

"Habit, I'm sure," Xatu said. "Well I suppose since we're here and you've revealed yourself, we may as well get introductions over with. Since you're the uninvited guest, I'll let you go first."

"Uhh…my name is Axle," Axle said hesitantly.

"Xatu," the xatu replied.

"Like the one in Treasure Town?" Axle asked.

"Oh, so that old bird is still around is he?" Xatu asked. "Good for him. Yes, like the xatu in Treasure Town. I would prefer if you don't mix the two of us up. We're quite different."

"It'd help if you didn't have the same name," Axle snarked under his breath.

Unfortunately for him, Xatu heard his snarking. "Not all of us have the same naming conventions as you. I wouldn't talk."

"Uhh…sorry," Axle said. "Anyways, do you live around here? If so, can you help me? There's a village I need to find as soon as possible."

The xatu sighed. "I would like to say I have no reason to, but I can sense your desperation will not be satiated by a 'no.' Yes, I know which village you speak of. Though I know I will regret it, follow me. I will take you to my home village."

Axle bowed. "Thank you," the riolu said. "I hope along the way, I can earn your trust."

"Hmm…yes we'll indeed see where your conscious lies," Xatu said. The old bird turned around. "Follow me."


	7. Beginning the Path of a Thief

"Well here we are," Xatu said. "Welcome to Phoenix Village."

"Phoenix Village," Axle repeated while he stepped forward to see the village.

The forest around the village was at its thickest, barely leaving room for the riolu to step forward, but when he did he noticed the forest cleared out a lot. There was a lot more walking room with dirt paths becoming makeshift streets, trees being converted into houses, and stumps being used like chairs. Where there wasn't streets or houses, there were these small golden flowers that seemed to glow, making the village bright despite the fact that it was still thickly covered by leaves.

"What's with the flowers?" Axle asked.

"Legend says that a great fire once burned down this village," Xatu said. "The fire was powerful, nearly taking the entire forest along with it. Nearly the entire region banded together to stop the fire, even those that were once enemies worked together as if they were friends. Due to the unification of Pokémon for that moment, Ho-Oh revived this forest and those glowing flowers were created at the same time."

Axle took a step back. "Wait, you're saying that Ho-Oh…did all this?!"

 _I mean, I figured Ho-Oh must be powerful, but to be able to bring an entire forest back to life and even create a new flower along with it. That's…amazing. That's exactly the kind of power I need. Eon...Shaymin. I might be able to save you._

"Do you sense it?" Xatu asked.

"Sense it?" Axle asked. The riolu's sensors lifted up on their own accord and without meaning to, Axle felt exactly what Xatu was saying. "I can't completely tell but…something about this place feels odd. It feels different than the rest of the forest. In sort of a way that a Mystery Dungeon does, though this feels different."

"I'm sure you can imagine why," Xatu said.

Axle nodded. "Listen, Xatu. I need a favor."

"You, like so many others who have attempted to come to this village, wish to learn about where you might find Ho-Oh," Xatu said. "Am I right in assuming that?"

Axle took a step back, already feeling like his argument would just go to waste. "Well yeah, but let me explain."

"You have the floor," Xatu said.

"My friends got in a terrible accident a few days back," Axle explained. "They're both lying in a coma, on the verge of both life and death. The healers have done all they can for the two of them. And even if they do recover, one of them has a high chance of being crippled forever from her injuries. We're explorers and she's wanted to be an explorer all her life, so she'd be crushed if she ends up crippled."

"I don't want to just sit around, waiting for my friends to die. And when I heard about the Pokémon Ho-Oh and its power to revive Pokémon, I knew I had to search for it. I need Ho-Oh's power to help my friends. So please, anything you know that could help would be appreciated. I need whatever information you can give me to find Ho-Oh as soon as possible."

"Hmm…"

Xatu looked at Axle with inquiring eyes. The Mystic Pokémon examined the riolu for what felt like entire minutes, speaking not a word. Axle crossed his arms, attempting to wait patiently, though when the seconds passed by Axle became more and more impatient. Axle started clawing at himself to keep from speaking out against Xatu while he waited, but his patience soon ran out.

"I'm sorry for speaking out of turn, but could you please hurry?" Axle asked. "I fear my friends could be lost at any point in time, especially with me all the way out here."

"…We carry a library in our mother tree in the center of the town," Xatu finally said. "Inside that library, in the very center of it, there is an old scroll. A legend passed down about the Legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh. Included in that legend a way to summon Ho-Oh."

"So then…?" Axle was about to ask, but Xatu quickly cut him off.

"Only villagers are allowed inside the library," Xatu said. "This village is hidden for a reason. The secrets of Ho-Oh aren't just something that we wish to hand out to a random passersby. Even if someone somehow finds our village, we still block them from the library."

"So what does that mean for me?" Axle asked. "I'm sorry Xatu, but I really need that information. Is there any way that you would let an outsider into your library? Any exception you can make?"

Xatu once again examined Axle for half-a-minute. "…Three days," Xatu finally said.

"What?" Axle asked.

"Come back in three days," Xatu said. "Once there, you may take the test to become one of the villagers. Succeed and you may learn the secrets of the village."

"Three days?!" Axle asked, his arms shooting to his sides. "But who knows what could happen to my friends within that time! Isn't there a way to do it now?"

"These things take time," Xatu answered. "Three days is the minimum I can offer, and even that's pushing it. Normally you'd have to stay here and get to know the community for over two weeks before you could even hope to pass the trials required to become a member of this community. I am massively cutting a large part of the process. You should be grateful."

"I…I…" Axle stuttered. "But I…"

"Now, you may either stay here or go back with your friends," Xatu said. "Either way is fine by me. Until then though, I have things I need to be doing. I bid you a farewell. Should you heed my words, I will see you in three days."

And with that, Xatu left Axle there alone, in the middle of the village in the forest.

 _Three days…I can't wait three days!_ Axle thought as he looked in the direction Xatu went. _Eon or Shaymin could be dead by then! But what can I do?! Without the village's information, I'm going in blind! It could take years for me to find Ho-Oh without it!_

Axle looked down at his fists and clenched them. _So what now?! I'm screwed out of time either way! I can't…do anything…_

Axle dropped down to his knees. _No! NO! I can't! I won't! I refuse to let my friends die! I need…I need to do something! But wha…_

A memory suddenly floated back to Axle. One that he had forgotten a long time ago. One from back before he met Eon and Shaymin, back when he was a human.

" _Unfortunately, the lake guardians will no doubt ignore us and maybe even attack us when we come for their Time Gear,"_ one of the voices in his head said. " _We're going to be forced to steal them, probably by force."_

" _Wait?!"_ asked the other voice. " _What?! You're saying we're forced to become thieves?"_

" _Sadly, yes. But we need to do this. It's the only way to save the future. I don't like the fact that we have to become thieves either, but for such a cause I'll gladly be labeled a thief."_

" _I…suppose you're right. I don't like it either, but we have to do what we have to do. For the future."_

Axle's memory stopped there and then, bringing him back to reality. While getting back on his feet and rubbing off the grass from his legs, Axle thought about what his memory revealed to him. He continued thinking all the way to standing up and looking to the tree tops that surrounded them.

 _That memory…I can't remember the context of when it happened that well, nor could I even recognize which voice was mine and which was Grovyle's but…_ Axle crossed his arms to his sides, _it did remind me of something. When I came to this world, I did it with the plan to become a thief for the future of this world. I was willing to defy the law if it meant the world would survive. So…_

Axle looked towards the large tree where Xatu said the village's library was. _I'm sorry, Xatu,_ Axle thought, _but I'm not going to be coming back in three days. I simply can't._

The riolu left the village and waited in the forest until nightfall. He sat in one of the tree branches of a couple trees outside of the village, his eyes on what he assumed was the outer wall. There he waited patiently, watching what few glimpses of the sun he could get slowly fall across the horizon, watching what little light in the forest slowly dimmed, and watching to see which Pokémon came and went.

Eventually though, night finally fell. Axle still waited for what felt like a couple more hours, just to make sure the village was deserted, before jumping out of his tree. Axle quickly placed the X-Ray Specs over his eyes, allowing him to see perfectly despite the darkness, albite in a blue tint. He landed hard on the ground before walking towards the village in a careful manner. His eyes kept daring back and forth while he walked, careful for whatever could possibly see him.

Axle slowly crept up to the village and entered it, his eyes squinted in preparation for the glowing flowers. Luckily for him, when he entered the village it was completely and utterly dark. The previously golden flowers that gave off a brilliant light were all blueish and dark now.

 _Hmm…these flowers must react to sunlight,_ Axle thought. _Strange but convenient. Now I don't have to worry about sticking out like a sore thumb._

So Axle used his dark fur to hide into the shadows. He ran between the darkest parts of the village, blending in as well as he could. His eyes continued examining the scene for any sign of movement while running towards the largest tree. After a couple of minutes, which felt like almost an hour to Axle, he finally reached the library tree.

He spent a few minutes feeling around the brown wood for where the door was. His paw eventually knocked up against a handle to which Axle immediately wrapped his entire paw around. He first pushed the door and it opened up for him, allowing him in. So Axle went in, closing the door behind him after he was done.

The library itself was a circular room with a blue chandelier high above the place blowing out red flames that slightly lit up the library. Axle hid in the shadows behind a bookcase as he quickly scoped out the library for any sign of any Pokémon. He used his X-Ray Specs to even look behind the several bookcases and still saw nothing.

 _Hmm…looks like nobody's here,_ Axle thought. _You'd think for a library that's off limits to the public they'd have better security. Guess I can't complain though. I'd…rather not have anybody know about what I'm doing here._

With that out of the way, Axle quickly rushed across the isles of books. During his scoping out the library the riolu noticed something that caught his eye. Xatu said that the information about Ho-Oh was in a scroll and Axle thought he saw just the thing in the center of the room. So Axle ran towards that scroll.

The scroll itself was on a small pedestal…and that was it. The back of the scroll was colored golden but beyond that there was nothing distinguishing about it. It wasn't even blocked off by some glass or anything.

 _Am I…looking at the right thing?_ Axle asked himself. _I mean it's a scroll, but you'd think a scroll with information on the Legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh would have much more security to it. It's…a little suspicious._

Then Axle quickly realized something and he groaned internally. _Then again, Treeshroud Forest used to hold a Time Gear as well and it's Time Gear was hardly protected too. I guess the Eastern Forest is just the forest of bad security._

 _Only one way to find out if it's the real thing or not anyways._

Axle quickly grabbed the scroll and opened it. The scroll was large and Axle knew he couldn't read it all in one go, but he was able to gauge enough from it to know one thing. What was written on the first part of the scroll was…

"Exactly what Xatu told me about," Axle mumbled to himself. "This scroll is talking about the legend of the village's founding. This must be it. This must be the scroll detailing how to find Ho-Oh."

Axle rolled up the scroll and placed it against his left side, wrapping his left arm around the scroll to keep it in place. The riolu then took a quick look around the room for something to replace the scroll, but he quickly realized the futility of the task. The library was filled with books, the scroll Axle took being the only scroll in the library.

 _Great, this isn't going to look suspicious at all,_ Axle thought bitterly. _Not like I got much of a choice though. With any luck, I can sneak away and head to my base without anyone noticing me. I'll hide the scroll along the way so they won't find it if they do search me, then I can hopefully search for Ho-Oh without distractions._

Axle turned around and began walking back towards the entrance of the library _. I'll be found out eventually though. Maybe I can avoid it for a while, but I can't run forever. I just have to hope I can last for a while. If I can just find Ho-Oh and have them save my friends, than I don't care if they catch me and put me away. I just want to know that my friends are safe._

"And where do you think you're going with our scroll?" a voice asked Axle, causing the riolu to jump and quickly look around. His eyes eventually found Xatu, standing in the shadows of a bookcase to his left.

"X-Xatu!" Axle said.

"You know, you're an interesting Pokémon," Xatu said. "Loyalty is your strong point. It is obvious you form strong bonds with your friends and those friends mean more to you than life. You're would be willing to go to the ends of the earth for those friends happiness, in spite of your own. Despite the circumstances, there is something admirable about that."

"Uhh…thanks?" Axle said, unsure of how to take the complement.

"However, that brings about two major flaws," Xatu continued. "You choose extreme loyalty over self-preservation without any balance in-between. You have a life too and ruining it needlessly helps nobody. You also have friends who care about your well-being with the same zest you care about theirs."

"Second, you act upon an extreme haste without any sense of patience. Not everything is as wonderful as can be found on its first appearance. And in your haste, you miss those details that could tell you the true nature of what you seek. Don't let your haste blind you."

And with a nod, Xatu finished.

"Uhh…" Axle took a step back, trying to figure out exactly what was happening there.

"Now you have a decision to make," Xatu said. "I will not report your thievery…for the time being anyways. I want you to go home and take some time to think about the path you are taking. Calm your hate for now and take some time to really think about if this is the path you want to take."

"…Why are you doing this?" Axle asked.

"…I understand your more than you think I do," Xatu said. "And that's all I'm willing to reveal. I would recommend leaving now before I change my mind."

Axle gave Xatu and questioning glance, but quickly shook it off. "…Then I think you," Axle said. Without another word the riolu ran off and out of the library.

"So if you're not willing to tell the riolu, then would you mind telling me why you let him go off with our village's greatest treasure?" asked a deep voice from above.

"Ahh Chandelure," Xatu said while looking up. "Thank you for alerting me that the riolu was in here in the first place."

"Fat a lot that did when you let him go anyways," Chandelure said while he floated down to the ground and in front of Xatu. "What did you plan to accomplish anyways?"

"I can sense the passion and drive behind his crime," Xatu said. "Though I am loathe to let criminals run free, this is a special case. If I attempted to apprehend him I imagine he'd fight to the bitter end, possibly defeat me, and leave anyways. Far better to try and let he himself come to the realization of the consequence of his actions."

"And if he doesn't?" Chandalure asked.

Xatu turned away and looked out the door. "Then he will have made his choice and be forced to live with the consequences of that choice."


	8. Meetings and Goodbyes

_Blinking in and out of consciousness is the worst,_ Eon thought groggily as she once again regained consciousness.

The eevee laid there for a couple of seconds until she got a small burst of energy. With that, she proceeded to do her usual regaining-consciousness routine of looking around above her to see ifanybody was there. With that she would hopefully find someone to tell her how long she was out for and give her an update. Otherwise she would lay there, disappointed, until she lost consciousness once again.

This time, Eon was lucky enough to notice Chimecho floating around the room, heading in the direction of Shaymin. "H-hey Chimecho," Eon said weakly, weaker than she usually spoke.

"Oh Eon, you're awake," Chimecho said. She immeditly floated to the eevee's side. "Good to see you, Eon. How do you feel today?"

"Not…the best in the world," Eon admitted.

"Hmm…well I'm sure you'll have some bad days and some good days," Chimecho said.

"I'm better than I was when I first woke up, but not the best," Eon continued. "So…I don't know what to think to be honest."

"I'll have Alakazam check you out later if you want," Chimecho said. "But for now I'm sure you want to make use of the time you're awake."

"Yeah, thanks," Eon said. "So…has Shaymin woken up at all yet? Have you or any of the doctors seen him yet?"

"No, but he has mumbled a couple of times and we've seen him move around a bit. Honestly, we're really not sure why he hasn't woken up yet. His recovery hasn't changed either, at least from what we can tell. We might have to send someone to Shaymin Village and see if they can help us."

"That…doesn't sound good," Eon said, her head lowering.

"To be fair, his condition hasn't grown worse either. Maybe it's just that shaymin recover slower than usual. We really don't know. That's why, as I said, we're debating on going to Shaymin Village to see if they might know something."

"Go ahead and ask," Eon said. "You really shouldn't take risks when it comes to our recovery."

"I said the same thing, but some of the doctors don't want to bother the shaymin needlessly," Chimecho said.

"Well if they're not willing to go, maybe you could send Axle over to Shaymin Village," Eon suggested.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me! Axel's back at the guild now. He seemed to be out all night and just came back this morning, so we're not sure if he's awake or not, but if he is I can bring him in for you if you want."

Eon's head lifted up higher. "Really? Please if you can. I really want to talk to Axle, and I'm sure he wouldn't mind talking to me too."

"I'll certainly try," Chimecho said. "Be back in a second."

Chimecho floated away from the room, leaving Eon there waiting. Eon still kept her head up though, hope to see her friend welling in her heart. In the time Chimecho was gone, Eon even tried getting on her paws instead of lying flat on the ground. And while she failed, Eon at least managed to get her front legs off the ground and got herself in a sitting position, looking up a bit higher.

 _Hopefully if Axle sees me like this, he won't be as worried about me,_ Eon thought. _I'd really like to set his heart at ease._

Eon waited there for a couple more minutes until she heard footsteps coming in her direction. She smiled when she heard that, knowing both that Chimecho floated around and recognizing the sound of the walking. Eon kept up her strength, looking at the doorway, until a familiar blue coat walked through it, his red eyes looking directly at the eevee.

"H-hey Axle," Eon said with her best smile possible on her face.

What happened next completely startled Eon. Axle quickly ran up to the eevee and, after kneeling down, wrapped his arms around her in a hug, his arms going under her forelegs and his head going over her shoulder. Eon's eyes widened and her mouth dropped when she felt what happened. The force of the hug was also enough that it nearly lifted her forelegs off the ground.

"Uhh…I'll just give you two space then," Chimecho said before quickly leaving the room.

"H-hey Axle?" Eon asked.

Axle unwrapped himself from Eon and placed his head back in view of her. His eyes were wide and he had bags under them, and he just looked incredibly worn out. Even though he had a smile on his face, it was half-hearted and looked like it could falter at any second. The riolu also kept his right paw on the eevee's shoulder.

"…Sorry about that," Axle finally said. "I just…I'm happy to see you awake finally."

Eon also smiled and tried to place a paw on Axle's shoulder as well. Unfortunately, she could barely place her paw an inch of the ground before her joints cried out in pain. Eon winced and nearly fell to the ground, only just barely avoiding it thanks to Axle quickly catching her before she fell.

"Uff, sorry," Eon said. She felt her face heat up from the second hug she got that day, even if it was accidental.

"It's…ok," Axle said, his face falling. "You're not at 100%. You can be forgiven for not being able to move that well."

"I'll be ok though Axle!" Eon quickly yelled. Axle looked back up at her, into her eyes. "Please. Don't worry about me," Eon continued, slower and softer now since she was starting to feel woozy. "I'll be just fine. I promise you. So don't…be too worried over me."

Axle gave Eon a small smile. "Alright. Good to know. Thanks Eon."

"N-no problem Axuuuullllll…"

Eon tried to hold on to consciousness for as long as possible but her body eventually gave out and darkness once again surrounded her.

Axle noticed Eon's eyes closed and her body fell limp within his arms. Axle sighed and slowly laid her down on her bed on her side. Just in case, Axle felt around her bandaged chest until he felt a weak, but steady pulse, letting out a breath of relief when he did.

"Hey Chimecho," Axle called out after he was done. "You can come in now. Eon's…asleep."

"There's not much I can do anyways, but sure," Chimecho said. She then floated back into the room until she was next to Axle looking down at Eon. "It's too bad really. She fell asleep a lot faster than I thought she would. I didn't even get the chance to tell her the time."

"Does she ask that a lot?" Axle asked.

"Well she does every time I'm there when she wakes up," Chimecho said. "After asking about Shaymin and you she'll usually ask how long she was out. She says it's just to keep an idea on the time while she's stuck in that room. If it makes her feel better, I'm happy to help out."

Chimecho suddenly sighed and looked forlorn. "It's the least I can do anyways. Otherwise there's not much I can do to help her. Honestly Axle, I kinda understand what you're going through."

"Wait…what?" Axle asked.

Chimecho looked at the riolu. "I've heard you've been feeling restless from not being able to do anything. I'm feeling the same way. I'm usually the one who helps heal all you guys from whatever scrapes you get in while on explorations, even major ones. I'm the one who healed you guys when you got massively roughed up by Grovyle. But…" Chimecho looked at both Shaymin and Eon, "this is beyond what I can do. I know, it's hard feeling helpless like this."

"Even now. I'm really worried about both of them. Shaymin hasn't even woken up yet and it's been such a long time. Eon on the other hand…she's been unconscious longer and hasn't been awake as long as usual. I want to believe that it's just because they're recovering but…I don't know."

"Has Alakazam said anything new?" Axle asked. "Anything at all about her condition?"

"Nothing we don't already know," Chimecho said. "That's where I'm placing my hope in now. But it's been so long since either of them have showed any sign of recovery. And especially with Eon, I'm kinda worried…"

"That she'll be stuck like this?" Axle asked, horror seeping into his mind.

"I think Alakazam thinks that," Chimecho said. "Granted, he hasn't specifically stated anything, but you can kinda tell just by talking with him."

"…" Axle looked back at Eon silently. _Eon…could you really be like this for the rest of your life? Constantly stuck in between being asleep and waking up, never able to even walk again. What kind of life is that? Not only will you lose your dream, but you won't even be able to live a normal life._

"This can't stay like this," Axle said. "I refuse to let your life become this Eon. …No matter the cost."

Axle turned around and started walking off. He heard Chimecho calling after him, but Axle for the most part ignored her. He just kept walking through the guild until he reached the guild's crew rooms. Once he got there, he walked to the straw bed he was using and scattered it until he found the scroll he stole.

 _Xatu asked me to think about which path I wanted to take. I don't need to do much thinking though. All I need to do was look at my friends. Think about what? Shaymin's on a path to death and Eon can't move anywhere. Our team is finished if I don't do something. So I know what I have to do._

Axle opened up the scroll a little. _The Clear Wing. Apparently, it's an object that, when combined with the elements, turns it into something called the Rainbow Feather. If I can get that, I can apparently summon Ho-Oh from its resting place. There's just one problem. …There was a slip of paper in the scroll telling me exactly where the Clear Wing is._

 _It's the treasure of a village not far from here. It was mentioned in the note that they'd only give it to someone they trust unconditionally. …I obviously don't have that trust, nor do I have the time to gain that trust. So I'm going to have to steal from another village._

Axle looked back behind him in the relative direction of where his two teammates were. In his mind's eye he saw Eon behind him, her bright smile, her wide eyes, and he saw Shaymin, his cheerful attitude and smirk. A tear finally started forming in Axle's right eye, slightly blurring his vision. More began forming, as Axle cried for the first time in years.

 _I'll try my hardest not to get caught, but something tells me I'm going to fail. There's a good chance that I'll be found out and when that happens…I'll be branded an outlaw. And when that happens…_

Axle stood up and shook his head. _I'll need to get my own bag. I can't keep this hidden in my room for much longer. Our bag might be repaired by now, but I'd rather leave Eon with it. I know a guy who owes me a favor, so I'll use that._

Axle grabbed his scroll and tucked it in between his arm. _I guess I should head out now. I can't…stay here any longer._ He then turned around and walked his way out of the place.

Along his way, right before he reached the staircase leading up, he was stopped by Chimecho. Axle shifted slightly when he saw her going towards her to place the scroll outside her line of sight. He tried his best to do it naturally without drawing any suspicion to himself.

"Hey Chimecho," Axle said. "Sorry for just walking out like that."

"I understand. That wasn't exactly the easiest thing to say either," Chimecho said. "Hey listen, since you're heading out, would you mind going to Shaymin Village? I'm hoping one of them can help explain why Shaymin's been out for so long."

 _I…suppose that's on my way,_ Axle thought. "Sure, I will," the riolu assured Chimecho.

"Thanks Axle," Chimecho said.

Axle turned away. "No problem," he said without looking at her. "…Chimecho…listen."

"Yeah, what's up?" Chimecho asked.

"…I'm going to be gone, possibly for a long time," Axle said. "So…take care of Eon for me, would you? And should Shaymin wake up, have him do the same."

Without waiting for an answer from Chimecho, Axle walked up the steps and out of her sight. While the riolu tried his best to avoid it, tried his best to hold it back as he walked up the steps, he could feel one last tear fall from his right eye.


	9. Caught

Evening fell by the time Axle finished all of his tasks that he had for the day. The riolu was standing hidden in the shade of trees looking out at the dark orange sky as it slowly faded to purple. He breathed in, breathed out, calming his nerves before the most important task he had to do tonight.

Before all light disappeared, Axle stepped out a bit to get a better view of the large plains in front of him. It was large, flat, and there wasn't much there, so Axle could easily see the only point of interest for miles. At 10:00 from his position there was a small village hiding a big secret. Axle subconsciously reached his right paw for his newly acquired small blue bag when he laid his eyes on the village.

 _Grovyle, I wonder if you felt the same way I do when you first looked at Treeshroud Forest,_ Axle thought while he examined the village. _Knowing that you're about to do is necessary but the world will be against you for it. You're pretty lucky though. At least you had nothing to lose and knew you would disappear when you accomplished it anyways. Kinda wish I had that luxury. But I suppose you reap what you sow. And so long as Eon is able to live out her dream again…I don't care what happens to me._

 _In any case, I still need to wait for a bit. No use thinking like a martyr now. If I can, I'd like to just get in there and get out without being caught. Xatu said he wouldn't tell anybody so they wouldn't be able to pin this on me. Maybe then, after my quest is done, I can go back to the guild again and explore with my friends. If only._

 _Anyways, I should get some rest first. Tonight's going to be a long night._ So Axle jumped up into the tree right above him for cover and closed his eyes to rest for a while.

After an insurmountable time, while it was still dark, Axle woke up. After a couple of seconds of waking up, Axle jumped down off the branch he was sleeping on. Placing his X-Ray Specs over his eyes, Axle took a look around. He couldn't see anything in between his position and the village, but what was going on inside the village was beyond his range.

"Hmm…I'm going to need to get closer before I can plan out a path," Axle mumbled. "I'll have to really play this by my senses. I don't know the layout of the town, but I'm used to that. My X-Ray Specs should tell me where the item I'm looking for is and where everyone is, so I shouldn't have too much trouble."

So Axle quickly ran across the desolate plain until he reached the village's entrance and saw the carved dirt roads in between the houses. Axle then hid behind one of the houses, making sure to avoid any and all windows, and looked into the village. Despite the blue tint and darkness, Axle could perfectly make out anything and everything within the village.

 _Good, it seems like there's no one running around the streets,_ Axle thought when he looked around. _Most Pokémon are in the houses. There are a few that seem to be awake though. Gonna need to avoid those houses if I want to avoid being seen. Wonder who the heck is awake at this time of night anyways?_

Axle continued looking until he found his prize. _Alright, got it,_ Axle thought. _I think I've got a good idea of which path to take too. I should still be careful though. Stick to the shadows if I can. The X-Ray Specs only show so much and I might have missed something._

So Axle did so, running through the town with sifting through the shadows. Axle jumped to any dark shadow left by the moon in the sky to blend in. Axle would stop every once in a while in those shadows to make sure he was following the right path and wasn't seen by anyone. And he continued doing this for a few more minutes until was within sight of his destination.

 _Crap, guards,_ Axle thought when he saw the home that housed the object he was looking for, and specifically the two rampardos who were blocking the entrance. _Great, looks like this place actually bothered to have security. How did I miss them though?! Or did they just get here?_

Axle groaned. _It's not like it matters either way. They're there and that's all that matters. So is this it? Is this the point where I end up as an outlaw?_

Axle looked over at the two guards for a few seconds. _…No. As much as I'd like to knock them out, I can't have myself be on the run yet. I need to only knock them out as a last resort. For now, I should inspect for any way to get in without fighting them. Or maybe wait for them to change shift, since they can't stay out there forever._

So Axle waited for a bit, inspecting with his X-Ray Specs while waiting to see if the guards will leave. He found no alternate entrances and the guards didn't leave in all the time he was searching. Axle tapped his foot in annoyance, deciding on what he was going to do next.

 _Alright…this isn't working,_ Axle thought. _Dang it, what am I going to do…_

"Hey Mr. Rampardos!" Axle heard a voice from somewhere say. He immediately jumped away from his position and ran in the direction of an alleyway between two buildings. From there he looked back in the direction he was at with his X-Ray Specs.

In front of the two rapardos were a sentrat and a zigzagoon that both looked to be quite young. The zigzagoon had a bow on their side, suggesting them to be female, while the sentrat had pretty much nothing about them that separated them from other sentrant. The rampardos were also looking down at the two instead of looking at the door.

 _Hmm…maybe I can use this,_ Axle thought. _Gonna sneak in and see what those kids want._

Axle snuck closer, being sure to keep in the shadows and out of sight, and while he did he listened in to the conversation that was going on in front of him.

"Isn't it long past both your bedtimes?" the rampardos on Axle's left asked.

"But we saw something!" the zigzagoon said. "We saw something in the village! Something sneaking around!"

Axle paused for a second when he heard that. _No…but how!_ Axle thought. _I was careful! How could they have possibly seen me!_

"You mean like you two are sneaking around tonight?" the other rampardos said.

"Yeah, I know, its awesome right?" Sentrat asked, prompting all three of them to give him a look.

"Now would you two let us do our job?" the left ranpardos asked.

"Come on!" the zigzagoon said. "This might be big! There could be an outlaw hiding in the village!"

Both rampardos sighed. "You mean like the last time there was something 'big' in the village?" the rampardos on the right said.

"But this time it's really really big!" the zigzagoon said. "I saw something light-blue dash around the place!"

 _Wait, my bag!_ Axle thought. _Dang it! Of course! My bag stands out like a sore thumb! Why didn't I think of that?!_

"Alright you two, scamper on home," the right rampardos said in a much harsher tone.

"Oh come on, we can't be lying all the time," Sentrat said. If Axle wasn't in a precarious position, the riolu would have laughed at this.

"Alright, you two are going home, now," the rampardos said.

The two rampardos than proceeded to grab the two kids and take them away. Axle watched as this happened, waiting within the shadows until the two guards were far enough away. Even afterwards he stood there for a few seconds with his mouth open.

… _No, not going to question it,_ Axle finally said, snapping him out of his trance. _Just enjoy my luck and go. I don't have time to worry about this._

So Axle quickly dashed into the building while the Rampardos were still gone. The inside of the building itself was small with no more Pokémon inside it. And the object Axle was looking for was sitting on a pedestal with no other protection.

 _Good, at least I was right about that,_ Axle thought. _Considering everything else I was wrong about. And there it is. The object that I can use to find Ho-Oh. A Clear Wing._

Axle quickly snatched up the Clear Wing and put it into his bag. Without hesitation or any other distractions Axle quickly ran out of the building. When he got out he saw the Rampardos coming back, so Axle quickly ran around the building till he was on the other side.

 _Crap, that was way too close,_ Axle thought. _I need to get out of here now! Just head the other direction!_

So Axle, ignoring every form of stealth or carefulness, ran across the streets. With wild abandon and recklessness Axle ran as if his life depended on it. Therefore he reached the other end of town much quicker than he originally reached the building. When Axle saw that he tried dashing towards his destination.

He tried…until the riolu was hit with a hard tackle to his right side.

The force of the tackle knocked Axle onto his side and sent him sprawling across the ground. Axle faced worse, so he immediately got back on his feet, but what he ended up seeing when he got back up nearly knocked him back down. Standing right in front of him were the two kids from before, the zigzagoon and the sentrat.

"Ha! Take that outlaw! I knew you were here!" the sentrat said.

"Hey everybody, the outlaw is here!" the zigzagoon yelled.

Axle felt his heart fall at the zigzagoon's yelling, but even worse, after that he heard loud footsteps coming from his right. When Axle looked he couldn't see them yet, but he knew they were going to be there before he could leave with those two in front of them. The nervousness of the situation nearly made the riolu fall over where he stood and he couldn't move a muscle at first.

 _N-no! Dang it! I'm…caught! No! I…I should have known this would happen._

It wasn't long before the footsteps became louder and Axle was sure he would be seen so. The two kids also looked like they weren't going to let Axle leave anytime soon. Axle knew he had to make a decision and make it fast.

 _I can't stay here any longer! I…need to do something! I…_ Axle looked at the two kids. _…There's only one thing I can do. …Even if they find me, this should distract them long enough for me to escape. I'm…sorry Eon._

Axle closed his eyes and tried to calm himself. Failing that though he clenched his fists and his eyes, trying to avoid letting his tears fall down. Axle couldn't open his eyes, so the best he could do was let his aura sense and instinct do what he needed to do for him.

"I'm…sorry for this. But I need to pass!"

When Eon awoke next it was during an uproar of the guild. She could hear a lot of noise coming from the floor right above her, but wasn't able to hear exactly what was going on above her. The eevee looked around the room she was in as best as she could in her current state to try and find anyone who could explain to her what was going on. All she managed to find though was a shaymin in its land form standing over her teammate Shaymin.

"Uhh…hey?" Eon asked in the shaymin's direction. "Excuse me?"

The shaymin looked up and towards Eon. "Oh…hey," the shaymin said to Eon in a more feminine voice than Shaymin has. "You must be Rai…sorry, Shaymin's teammate, right?"

"Yeah, I am," Eon said.

"I'm a doctor from Shaymin village," the shaymin said. "My name is Iris. I suppose I'll should tell you this, since you're probably worried about him. Like most Pokémon, we faint when we take heavy damage, only if it's really bad we Shaymin go into a coma-like state in order to recover. We can sometimes go for months in that state. But you don't need to worry about him. I know for the fact he's alive and when he finally recovers he should wake up from it, as good as new."

Iris chuckled. "Besides, we shaymin are a bit more resilient than that."

"Well thanks for telling me, but that's not what I'm worried about right now," Eon said. "But thanks for telling me. It's good to know Shaymin's still alive. Anyways."

"Do you know what's happening upstairs?"

"Hmm…" Iris looked up. "…I can't tell exactly what's happening, but it sounds like it has something to do with outlaw. Strange. Doesn't this guild deal with outlaws on a regular basis anyways? Wonder what they did to get the guild like this?"

"I don't know," Eon mumbled. "But…something feels wrong. I can't put my paw on it but something feels very wrong."

Eventually Chimecho, Audino, and Alakazam came into the infirmary. Eon immediately looked in their direction and would have asked the three what was going on if Iris didn't reach them first. Eon waited patiently for them to stop their talk and they eventually turned their attention to her.

"What happened?" Eon asked. "What's going on up there? What outlaw and what did they do?"

Chimecho looked downcast. "It's…nothing you need to worry about now," Chimecho tried saying but everyone who heard her could tell she was lying.

"Keeping up this façade is fruitless," Alakazam said. "She'll learn eventually. Better to learn the truth now rather than later."

"Wha-?"

"We recently got word of an outlaw that stole an item from a nearby village," Alakazam said. "What's interesting is the description we got of the outlaw. A riolu wearing X-Ray Specs. Funny, I've heard riolu were rare in this region, but one with X-Ray Specs too?"

"Would you stop teasing her?" Audino scolded. "This is her friend we're talking about here!"

"Axle? A thief?" Eon asked. "No! That's not possible! Axle would never become a thief!"

"Then how would you explain the riolu holding the glasses?" Alakazam asked. "Feel free to try; I'm sure this will be interesting."

"I'm…sorry Eon, but we're positive it's Axle," Chimecho said. "The description we got of him matches him perfectly. Plus…we think we know why he's doing this."

"Axle always felt like he needed to do something to help," Audino said. "He was getting restless. We could all tell that. But to do something like this…?"

"It doesn't matter," Alakazam said. "The riolu will tell us as soon as we capture him. We learned quickly after the act and a party will be sent out soon to find and capture him. He has no chance."

"A-Axle…" Eon mumbled, looking to the floor with sorrow.

Chimecho floated up to Eon. "We're…sorry Eon."

Eon shook her head. "Hey Chimecho, can you take a step back?"

"Uhh…sure Eon?" Chimecho said uncertainly as she took a step back.

As soon as Chimecho did Eon's limbs trembled. Eon winced but her limbs kept shaking. Eventually Eon started lifting herself up off the ground, getting on her four paws for the first time in a while.

"Wait Eon!" Chimecho yelled. "You shouldn't be getting up yet. Especially if it hurts you this much!"

Yet Eon ignored her and continued getting up. Eventually she made it, her face scrunched up in pain yet she was still standing proud. After a couple of seconds she even managed to get the pained look of her face.

"I-I'll be fine," Eon said. "I'm going after Axle!"

"Eon!" Chimecho yelled.

"But you just got up after being down for days!" Audino said to try and talk her out of it. "Even if you were fully healed, which you're not, there's no way you could possibly reach Axle before he escapes in time! And it's raining outside!"

"W-watch me!" Eon grunted. "I…need to be the one to see Axle!" She scrunched up her face in pain before jumping out of the room in a single bound.

"Well, this is interesting," Alakazam said emotionlessly. "I wonder if she realizes that she's putting herself in terminal risk by straining herself like this."

"Are you really taking some sort of sick joy out of this?!" Audino chastised.

Alakazam crossed his arms. "Hardly. I get no enjoyment from watching this happen. However they made their decisions so they'll reap the consequences."


	10. A Fight between Friends

Eon and Axle both shook their heads, snapping them back to the present. Eon looked Axle in his eye again, giving him the fiercest look she could possibly manage. Axle was barely able to stand his ground seeing his partner look at him like that.

"This is your last chance Axle!" Eon said. "I…don't want to fight you but I will! Come with me now or I'll have to take you by force!"

"I…I can't Eon," Axle said. "I have to finish my mission. Please, just go back home and get some rest."

Eon shook her head and spoke on a sad voice. "Fine, if that's how you want it. Then I have no choice."

Eon quickly reached into her bag and fired a seed at Axle. Axle, instantly recognizing it as a Sleep Seed, dodged out of the way to avoid its effects. Eon had two others as well, both thrown in his direction. Axle continued dodging them all, preventing any of the seeds Eon threw to reach his mouth. Of course doing so took his eyes off Eon for long enough for her to start an attack.

Eon quickly crossed the gap between her and Axle using a Quick Attack. Axle was just barely able to dodge Eon in time, though she did nick him in the shoulder. Axle turned around to keep an eye on Eon, but he was too late to stop her from hitting him with Return. Axle was blown back by the force of the attack and ended up sliding on his back through the mud.

"Had enough, Axle?" Eon asked, after quickly flinching from her attack. "Because I have plenty more where that came from!"

"Eon," Axle groaned. He got back up on his feet and looked at his partner. She had a confident look on his face but she also had one eye closed from the pain she was going through.

 _I need to stop this now!_ Axle thought. _But what can I do? I can't hurt her! But I can't let her keep hurting herself. What do I do?_

"Eon, stop!" Axle yelled. "I'm doing this for your own good! Please! I know the consequences already, and I'm prepared for them. I don't want you hurting yourself before that, though. So please. Stop."

Eon just shook her head. "You've gone too far Axle," Eon said. "I'm not going to let you go farther. If you want to leave, then you're going to have to go through me!"

Eon than launched another Quick Attack at Axle. This time Axle jumped over her to dodge her, landing on his paws and doing a quick turn around by the time he got back on his feet so he could face Eon again. Eon herself skidded to a stop and turned around, Shadow Ball in mouth, launching the black sphere directly at Axle. And due to Axle's previous athletics, he was unable to dodge the attack.

"Aarrgg!" Axle grunted as the attack exploded in his face and knocked him onto his back. Axle quickly got back up and brushed his face off, but he could tell that his endurance was starting to waver.

 _Crap. This…isn't…good. I have to do something!_

Axle decided to try and fake her out by wrapping his arms in dark claws. He then ran at her, Shadow Claw in paw, and slashed at her with all his might. Eon wasn't startled though, and the normal-type let the ghost-type attack pass harmlessly through her.

"Did you really think that was going to work?" Eon asked. "Please don't insult my intelligence with everything else you're doing."

And, as if just to show her intelligence, Eon launched another Return straight into Axle's stomach, knocking him into the air from the force of the blow. Axle landed hard on the ground with a grunt, and it took all of his energy to get back up from the pain. When he did he even had to hold on to his left arm with his right and could barely keep himself upright.

"Eon…you need to stop," Axle grunted. "Please, just let me go. I don't want to fight you. I don't want to hurt you."

Eon'd eyes faced the ground. "I…don't want to hurt you either Axle," Eon admitted. "I don't want to be doing this either. But I can't let you leave. I'm not going to let you leave."

Eon stamped her paw into the ground then looked back up. "So fight back Axle!" Eon yelled. "If you want to get through me, fight back! If you're so worried about me than fight back already! I'm not a fragile eevee. I am your partner who has been through hell with you! So fight back!"

"Eon…" Axle mumbled as he looked at her. "I…I don't want to hurt you…" Axle shook his head, "But I won't let you hurt yourself over me either. And if you're going to keep fighting me the fine." Axle balled his fists and got in a fighting stance. "I'll have to knock you out and send you back to the town to keep you from hurting yourself more. I'm…sorry Eon."

"Then prove it," Eon said.

Eon rushed forward in another Quick Attack but this time Axle caught her with his right paw, taking the attack without moving back to far. With Eon in his right paw, Axle brought his left paw down as well, launching a Force Palm on her. The force of the attack sent Eon back with a scream and caused her to roll around in the mud for a bit. Despite Eon's insistence that he fight back, though, Axle knew he didn't give that attack his all. He couldn't.

"Eon…I'm sorry for this," Axle said quietly.

Eon shakily got up on her paws. "…I'm fine," the eevee mumbled. "I've faced worse. And I'm not going to let you win."

Eon powered up another Shadow Ball in her mouth and launched it at Axle. Axle was ready to counter that attack though, because as soon as Eon launched it, Axle's arms glowed a silver color. When the Shadow Ball got half-way between the two of them Axle launched his Bullet Punch attack, destroying the Shadow Ball attack and hitting Eon with several silver punches. The force of the many attacks shoved Eon back a bit.

"Sorry Eon, but I'm not going to let you come any closer to me," Axle said. "Just give up and go home."

"Like you can make me!" Eon said. With her front paws Eon quickly dug into the ground.

"Wait…should you really be digging in your condition?!" Axle asked, though Eon was far too gone to hear him.

Seconds later Eon came back up from the ground directly under Axle, knocking them both into the air. While Axle was in the air and unable to do anything, Eon launched a Shadow Ball at him from point blank range, hitting him hard and sending him towards the ground. The explosion from the attack also hit Eon, though all it did was send her back again. She was able to land on her paws but Axle wasn't so lucky, impacting the ground on his back and splashing mud all around.

"Had enough yet?" Eon asked fiercely, though she was wincing herself from the pain of digging.

Axle shakily got up and reached into his bag with his eyes closed. While Eon looked on with a mystified expression Axle grabbed a blue berry from his bag and quickly ate it. A couple of seconds later Axle wiped the mud off his face and looked at Eon, all the fatigue gone from his eyes.

"Did you seriously think I wouldn't stock up?" Axle asked. "Apple Woods and Oran Forest were on the way so I made sure to get my supplies up. Sorry Eon."

Axle rushed forward while using another Shadow Claw. Eon just rolled her eyes and let the claws of darkness pass across her. She was about to scoff at him, even opening her mouth up to get ready to do so, but Axle stopped her by quickly thrusting his hand on the ruff of fur on her neck. Before even a noise left her mouth, Axle launched her with a Force Palm.

This time, Eon managed to land on the ground on all four of her paws, though she winced at doing so. The eevee continued to ignore all pain and ran for Axle using Quick Attack. The riolu acted quickly and threw some mud from the ground straight at her before dodging away. Thanks to that mud, Eon's attack failed to hit it's mark.

While Eon was distracted, Axle ran forward with his right arm clenched into a fist. A swirling purple and orange aura of energy surrounded that fist as he pressed on forward. The attack hit Eon's side while she wasn't looking, sending her flying forward while the energy she lost from that attack went into Axle. Though it wasn't much, as even when using Drain Punch Axle didn't feel like he gave it his all.

"Just give up and go back to the guild now, Eon," Axle said as he watched Eon splash into the mud with a heavy heart. "Stop fighting already before you hurt yourself more! You can't win and you know it!"

Eon reached into her bag with her mouth and grabbed out an Oran Berry to eat. "I made sure to keep my supplies up too, Axle," Eon said after eating the berry. "I can keep going as long as you can. And I need to keep going longer. So I'll fight for as long as I can. You can't make me leave, Axle, so stop trying."

"But be honest, despite eating that berry, you're in massive agony right now, aren't you?" Axle asked. "How long do you think you can keep up before something happens! How long can you keep up until you die?!"

"'I know the consequences already, and I'm prepared for them,'" Eon repeated in an almost mocking tone. "'I have to finish my mission.' …I won't let it be anyone else. I won't let anyone else take you in. It has to be me and me alone. I'm just as determined as you are."

"…Fine then," Axle said. "I'll just have to knock you out with one last blow."

"Same here," Eon said, her face scrunched up and looking kinda pale. "I'm…going to take you out. Sorry Axle, but this is it."

Axle rushed forward, pouring as much aura into his right paw as possible, to the point where it glowed blue. Eon also rushed forward in a crescent arc aiming towards Axle's unprotected left side. They both aimed for one blow to end the fight, not holding anything back. As the distance between them reduced and they got closer they knew that this would be the final blow. They got closer and closer until they were mere inches away from each other.

Until a purple aura surrounded the two of them and they were both stopped right before they hit each other by a psychic force. They struggled and fought against the attack that hit both of them, but neither could do anything about it. Their bodies were forced to be completely still and neither could do anything about it.

"Heh, sorry you two," a familiar voice to both of them said. "But I hate to see my favorite couple fight with each other like this."


	11. A Heart to Heart

"…Shaymin?!" Axle and Eon both asked.

The psychic aura around them dissipated and they both turned around to see their friend, in his Sky Forme, looking at both of them with a triumphant smirk. The shaymin didn't look too worse for wear despite what he previous went through, there were some bandages on his injured side and some tuffs of fur missing, but compared to Eon, Shaymin looked well stitched together.

"Surprised to see me huh?" Shaymin asked.

"Considering last I saw you in a coma and fighting for your life, yeah I'd say I'm surprised," Axle said.

"Well if someone didn't go running off to be a thief, they would have been there when the shaymin doctor got there and said that Shaymin was just recovering," Eon said bitterly. "Wouldn't that be nice to know. But nope, we're here now instead."

"Note to self, don't get Eon angry," Shaymin said.

Eon sighed. "Sorry." Less bitterly, to Shaymin she asked, "How did you get here?"

"I flew, duh," Shaymin said with a smile. "Just because it's dark as heck out here doesn't mean it's still daytime. It's close to the afternoon if I had a guess. So I can still be in my Sky Forme."

"That's not what I meant," Eon said. "You were still asleep when I last saw you."

"I was still recovering," Shaymin explained. "Didn't the doctor tell you? We shaymin go in comas until we're fully recovered, assuming the attack wasn't fatal. So of course I was still asleep. I'm awake now, though, because I finally managed to recover. The sunlight helped, since it's still sunny in Treasure Town."

"…Wait, you're telling me that your life was never in danger," Axle said.

"Maybe, maybe not," Rain said with a shrug. "That's just how I was when the shaymin doctor looked at me. Don't know about before."

Axle groaned. "Shaymin, please don't joke about this."

"What's wrong, can't handle that you're 'mission' was pointless?" Eon asked venomously.

"Alright, I think this is going a little too far," Shaymin said. "Listen you two, I saw some explorers headed this way, likely to capture Axle. Let's head into that forest over there for a bit so you two can cool your heads. You need a long talk with each other."

Shaymin walked off with Axle and Eon following him. They continued on their way until they reached the forest that Axle was originally going to hide in. They in went until they reached a good clearing in the forest where they could all stand in.

Once there, Shaymin forced Axle and Eon to sit down under threat of another Psychic to cool each other's heads. Axle himself was feeling more tired than he had before, the several sleepless nights he had been going through finally getting to him. His adrenaline was gone and all he could really do was wait for judgement.

However, he took a look at his Partner to see if he could gauge what she was thinking. He could still see the same look of betrayal on her face, but beyond that she lost her anger for confusion and curiosity. Though the look still made Axle's heart feel heavy, at least he knew that she was willing to listen.

"Alright you two, are you calm now?" Shaymin asked. "Are you ready to talk with each other?"

"Yeah…I am," Eon said. She looked directly into Axle's eyes. "Axle…why? Why would you do this? Why did you hurt those two kids? Why are you willing to become an outlaw? I just…I want to know that. Do you really feel that helpless?

"Yeah, figured that's where this conversation would go first," Shaymin said. He looked towards Axle. "Axle, if I've heard right, you were feeling pretty useless and wanted to figure out a way to save us, right? But there's more to it than that, right? After all, we're both alive now but you still look ready to bolt."

"Well first off, do you two know for sure you're going to make it?" Axle asked. "I mean, even if you guys are awake now you both are still pushing yourself far too hard for just waking up."

"And…?" Shaymin asked.

Axle looked at Eon. "Eon, be honest with me. How do you feel right now? You look pale and your trembling. And I could tell when you were fighting me that it hurt. Do you think you could explore like this? Especially some of the harder dungeons we run in. And you could end up crippled, especially by running around like this. Then what?"

"I…" Eon mumbled.

"I was never one to resign myself to fate," Axle said. "But that's what I was told to do. That's what everyone wanted me to do. Just hope that fate was kind to the both of you and maybe, and that's a very small maybe, you could fully recover. But most likely, you would be crippled at best, and at worst forced to live how you did the past few days, constantly sleeping and waking without doing anything. I…wanted to find something. I didn't want to just leave fate decide, I wanted to decide myself."

"Eon, your dream is to explore the world, solve its mysteries, discover new secrets," Axle continued. "You can't do that if you're crippled or dead. That's why I need to do this. I want you to be able continue your dream. I don't want to watch my best friend's dream die right before my eyes without me being able to do anything about it. If you can live your dream like you used to again…I honestly don't care what happens to me. They can throw me in jail or whatever, just so long as I know your safe."

Eon closed her eyes and sighed, her ears drooping. When she looked back up at Axle, she had a sad look on her face. Axle noticed few tears fell down her face and a few sobs coming from her mouth.

"Axle…that isn't want I want," Eon said. "What you talked about…yeah, that was my dream. Emphasis on was."

Eon looked back up. "Since that moment when I told you about my dream on the beach, I gained two good friends. A partner who has been with me through thick and thin and an eccentric, but surprisingly wise, shaymin. I can't imagine myself exploring without you two. If you were to end up in jail, even if it was for me, well…"

"That's why I had to capture you, no matter what," Eon continued. "If it was me, I was hoping I could get everyone to let you off easy. I was hoping I could keep you out of jail. Because I don't care whether I get crippled or not. Even if I somehow made a full recovery, I would hate watching you end up in jail just for it. You mean too much to me. So when I heard you were an outlaw…I panicked more than anything. That's why I was so determined to bring you back. That's why I've been so harsh on you. I…"

Eon ran up to Axle and buried her face in Axle's chest, hear tears streaming down even harder. "Please Axle, stop this!" she pleaded. "I really don't care what happens to me! I don't want to lose you! I don't want to see you doing things like hurting those kids! I just…want you here."

"Axle, we're pals," Shaymin said. "You're part of our little trio too. Never forget that. Without you thinks just wouldn't be the same. Maybe if we were actually dead or terminally ill with no hope of recovering, you could feel free to do what you're doing." Eon shot him an annoyed look. "But we're still here and fighting. We're gonna keep on fighting. So don't lose yourself over us."

"You know what you can do?" Eon asked, back up a little so he could see her eyes. "Be by our side. Be with us during the recovery process. Every time I was awake I wanted to see you Axle. I wanted to know you were staying strong for the both of us. When you did finally see me, it was a relief. You don't know how much of a relief it is to hear your voice, to know that you're here with me. That's all you need to do. You're not useless than."

Axle took a step back until he reached a tree trunk and leaned into it. "…Honestly, I'm glad that's all you need but…" Axle shook his head. "I don't feel like that's enough. I just…want to do something. Something big that'll make sure you guys both are alive and healthy. It's just…I feel like I need to."

"Well we're both here now," Shaymin reminded him. "Heck, you even got Eon determined enough to run all the way here and slow you down long enough for me to get here. I'd say that's pretty impressive."

"Do I have to remind you why we're here?" Eon asked in a defeated voice, "and what he exactly did?"

"Point taken," Shaymin admitted with a chuckle. "But beyond that Axle, you don't have to do anything big. At least not yet. Not while we're still fighting too. And trust me, we're going to keep fighting. Well, at least I am."

Shaymin looked towards Eon. The eevee sighed as she looked between Axle and Shaymin. Finally, she spoke.

"Axle, listen," Eon said. "I'll keep fighting to. I won't let fate cripple me. If it keeps me from seeing what I saw again. Seeing those kids lying there, knowing that you did it just to steal something. That you were and probably are still planning on stealing. Knowing that you'll need to hurt other explorers if you want to continue. If it keeps me from having to worry about that, then know I'll keep fighting to the bitter end. I don't know how much willpower will help, but I'll do everything I can."

"I didn't like it," Axle admitted. "Hurting those kids. Fighting you. It kinda hurt me to do it. I did it because I felt I had to, but I didn't like it. I did it though. Regardless of whether I hated it or not, I did do it. And the Pokémon I did it for didn't even want me to anyways." Axle chuckled a sad and hurt chuckle. "I guess you have every reason to hate me."

"I don't hate you," Eon restated. "I just…didn't like seeing what you did."

"Just…" Eon looked down. "If you're really going to go this far to help me…could you promise me you'll only do it if you absolutely need it? No matter how you feel, only do this as a last resort please. I…still don't like the idea but I can…accept it better as a last resort. Promise that for me, will you?"

Axle looked down at her. "…Yes, I promise. I still don't like how useless I feel…but for you I'll deal with it."

Eon looked up and smiled. "T-thanks Axle," Eon said.

"Woo hoo!" Shaymin yelled. "Alright, now it's time for some make-up-action! Don't hold back, now, you two!"

Axle and Eon both glared at Shaymin. The grass type couldn't help but laugh while Axle and Eon just rolled their eyes. Eon closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Shaymin, sometimes you are really…really…"

The eevee was unable to finish that sentence though. A couple of seconds later her eyes and mouth opened wide and her legs began wobbling. Before either Axle or Shaymin could react, Eon collapsed right in front of them and hit the ground hard.


	12. Fallout and Hope

Axle waited in a dark room with no other Pokémon around. He sat there in his solitary position waiting for someone to come to him and announce his fate. He had been waiting there for a while, cut off from the rest of the world while they decided something for him.

A couple seconds later a door opened up and light began filtering into the room. Axle blocked his eyes with his arm for a few seconds while he waited for his eyes to adjust to the sudden outburst of light. After his eyes got adjusted he put his paw down and looked to see who walked into the room. Unfortunately for him, it was Alakazam.

"Great, you're here," Axle groaned. "So, what bad news do you have for me this time?"

Alakazam just crossed his arms. "Since I am a representative of the Exploration Team Federation, it falls on me to tell you what the guild decided for your fate," Alakazam said. "I'm not here just to be a jerk. I've got better things to do with my time then antagonize a riolu."

"First, how is Eon?" Axle asked.

"Currently in treatment," Alakazam said. "Beyond that we can't tell you anything."

Axle groaned out of disappointment. "Fine, then tell me what you decided."

Alakazam cleared his throat and said, "Axle the riolu, you have on your head one count of theft and two counts of assault on minors. Normally we'd take you the same place we take all outlaws for punishment. If I were in charge you would be. However, your teammate Shaymin vouched for you and the circumstances allow you to get a lesser punishment."

"And?" Axle asked.

Alakazam used his psychic power to lift up a piece of paper. "For the next two weeks you will be unable to operate as an explorer," Alakazam read. "You will instead be taking part in both community service and any mundane jobs that the Wigglytuff's Guild gives you. You also have a mark on your record. Commit a crime again and your punishment will be much more severe."

Alakazam lowered the paper. "Also, your previous venture has become public knowledge. I haven't bothered checking, but I doubt public opinion of you is very high either. The price you pay for your actions."

"Are you sure you're not here to antagonize me?" Axle asked. "Because you sure do a good job of it, regardless."

Alakazam turned around and started walking off. Before he left Alakazam said to Axle, "It doesn't matter to me whether you believe me but, I have no malice to you. I only tell you the truth. You can ignore me or hate me. Others do that just fine."

"It'd help if you were a bit nicer about it," Axle said.

"The truth isn't exactly nice," Alakazam said. "Anyways, you're free to go for the night. Be sure to report back to the guild by tomorrow morning for your job. As for your friend…you'll probably learn about her fate tomorrow."

At a later point in time, Axle managed to get a small break in his punishment, which he used to go back to Phoenix Village, scroll in hands. Though a lot had happened between then and when Axle returned to the village, Axle still remembered the general path through the Eastern Forest that he needed to take.

It took him a while and Axle was slightly reluctant to go there, but he knew he had to do it. So with a sigh, Axle walked through the thick pattern of trees into the clearing that lead to Phoenix Village. The golden glowing flowers were there to greet him and also waiting there, at the village's entrance, was Xatu.

"So you've returned," Xatu said as Axle walked in.

"…How did you know I was coming?" Axle asked when he got close enough.

"Most xatu have the gift of precognition," Xatu said. "It varies in strength depending on the xatu, like I am nowhere near as powerful as my cousin who stands at the top of a cliff in a continent north of here, but we all have some of it. So I have a decent idea of the events that befell you."

"So you knew that I was going to steal the scroll, right?" Axle asked. "But then why would you just let me? Or even tell me to wait if you knew I wasn't going to?"

"I wish to be honest with you," Xatu said. "What I told you about waiting was for the most part a lie. There was very little chance we would be able to make you a member of the village within three days."

Axle groaned in annoyance. "So why tell me you can then?" Axle asked. "Was there a point?"

"No, I told you that we could get you in within three days for the sole purpose of frustrating you," Xatu said in a completely straight tone of voice. "Of course I had a reason."

Axle stomped his foot impatiently as he waited for the explanation.

"I saw you I saw three possibilities that you might take when I told you this information," Xatu said. "The first was the path that you did take, the path of a thief. The second was a chance that your friend might be better within those three days that we waited. If you didn't return, then I would have assumed that happened. Finally, there was the chance that your friend would end up in terminal condition by the time the three days passed. If so, and only then, I would have given you the scroll without any fight and even let the Clear Village know that you were coming. However, it would be only then and only as a last resort. It would need to be like that."

"It would need to be like that?" Axle repeated. "Why?" Axle nodded. "I mean, Eon told me herself that she didn't want me going too far for her unless as a last resort, but is there another reason?"

"So you haven't figured it out yet, have you?" Xatu pointed a wing to the flowers lining the ground. "Look at these flowers for me. As I mentioned to you before, these flowers did not exist before Ho-Oh revived them."

Xatu looked back at Axle. "There's also a legend about three Pokémon who were revived by Ho-Oh. It's an old human legend that's still lived on to this time. Entei, Raikou, and Suicune. Those three were created from Pokémon who died when an old tower, whose name has been lost to time, burned down. Who the three Pokémon that died were was also lost to time, but a few human theories have some…interesting suggestions of who they were."

Axle crossed his arms. "'Who they…'" Axle stopped and shook his head when he realized he was becoming a parrot. "Wouldn't they be Entei, Raikou, and Suicune that died?"

"That is…one possible explanation, albeit a vanilla one" Xatu said, shock actually somewhat appearing on his face. "It could be that the three were servants of the tower even back all that time. But there's another theory. Some human theories suggest that the Pokémon who Ho-Oh revived were three of eevee's evolutions. Specifically, Flareon, Jolteon, and Vaporeon."

Axle took a step back in surprise. "So wait…you're telling me that if I used Ho-Oh to revive Eon…it'd turn Eon into a Pokémon on par with Entei, Raikou, and Suicune?"

Xatu clapped sarcastically…which Axle personally thought looked odd with his wings. "Congratulations, the riolu finally got it."

"You could stand to say that in a less condescending way," Axle said with a glare.

"True," Xatu admitted. "And it is true that what I say isn't the absolute truth. We don't know for whether that would happen or not, so you can be forgiven for missing it. However…" Xatu looked over the flowers again, "there's a good reason to believe that."

Axle looked to the floor and sighed. "…Yeah, you're right. I suppose it does make sense when you think about it. And you did try warning me about that. You all just have to remind me that my quest was pointless."

"But your found something that could help your friend out and that was all you could think about," Xatu said. "Regardless of the consequences that was all you could think about. …I disagree with the actions you took, though there is something noble about your reasoning."

"But I need to think about my actions before acting, yeah yeah, I get it," Axle said, rolling his eyes in the process. "I don't really need to be constantly reminded of this constantly. I get enough of it back home."

"Just so long as you don't forget it," Xatu said. With a step he quickly snatched the scroll Axle was holding from his arms. "I'll be taking this back then."

"…Fine," Axle said. He turned around and began walking away. "I guess I should leave then. I have more work to do."

"Before you go, if you wouldn't mind me asking," Xatu said. "How are those friends of yours? The ones that you were so willing to commit theft for?"

Axle looked back. "What happened to Mr. Precognition?" Axle asked in a deadpan tone.

"If I am asking, then you can assume that I either don't know or am being polite," Xatu said. "Regardless, you don't have to tell me. You could just leave. Of course, that would be quite rude denying someone who is concerned with your friends' help information about them."

Axle rolled his eyes but still told Xatu anyways. "Shaymin is fine," Axle said. "He needed a couple of days of rest after that, but he's fine. As for Eon…" Axle's face fell. "They're…confident she's going to survive. That's…the important thing."

And with that, Axle walked away from the village.

It was late afternoon/early evening when Axle finally returned back to Treasure Town. He walked across the town on his lonesome and through decently crowded streets. While he walked through town and through the afternoon crowd he slightly noticed a few giving him various looks, some angry, some disappointed, some betrayed, some dirty. Others ignored him entirely as if he didn't exist. He didn't pay them much mind though, too lost in his own thoughts and memories.

" _Well we have good news and bad news for you. The good news is that we finally detected a major problem that we completely overlooked when we first examined her. And it was that problem that caused her to be unable to stay awake or do anything for too long. Thanks to finally finding that, we were able to treat it and treat it successfully. While we're still going to be keeping a close eye on her, we're pretty sure that Eon will survive and possibly even live a normal life if she wants to."_

"… _Unfortunately, there is bad news. She will survive and we even have a rehab program for her to recover with, but it's unlikely that her limbs will ever work as well as they used to or she'll ever have the same endurance. Especially after she…exerted herself as much as she did before, it's hard to see her recovering from that. She should be able to move around on her own just fine and she might even be able to spring short distances. But exploring or fighting…she might be able to handle one fight but anything else will push her beyond her limits. Baring a miracle, I don't think she'll be able to fight and explore with you ever again. At least, not how she used to. We're sorry."_

 _Eon, I know you said you didn't mind,_ Axle thought as he walked. _I know you said you don't care if you're unable to explore again. But still…_

Axle shook his head and left his thoughts, having reached his base on the edge of Shapredo Bluff. The riolu quickly walked down the stone staircase leading into the mouth of the cliff to be greeted by the usual scene. Three hay beds all laid down in a triangular shape around a small wooden table they used for eating. To his right near the teeth of the cliff were the barrels of berries that they used for breakfast or dinner and other basic supplies they might need. The only thing new was Shaymin standing at the teeth of the cliff, looking out at the ocean in front of him.

"Hey Shaymin," Axle said, mostly out of obligation than anything else. That was all he said to the grass-type before he walked to his bed. Unfortunately for him, the grass-type didn't leave it like that and even flew on Axle's bed.

"Hey Axle," Shaymin responded quickly. "I've got a little surprise for you! Come with me!"

"Can we do this later?" Axle asked wearily. "I really don't feel like doing anything else today."

"Nope," Shaymin said bluntly. "Alright, come with me!"

Shaymin then flew out of Sharpedo Bluff within a second. Axle stood there for a few seconds, looking in the direction that Shaymin flew off from. A couple seconds later, Axle rolled his eyes and sighed.

 _Knowing him, he's not going to let me sleep,_ Axle thought. _Fine. This better be good._

Axle walked back up the stairs and reached the top of their base, where Shaymin was waiting for him. Shaymin gave him a smirk and flew quickly off in the direction of Treasure Town. Axle looked at Shaymin with a confused expression on his face.

"I told you, it's a surprise," Shaymin said in response to Axle's look. "So come on already! Geez, no need to be slow."

"What is this about?" Axle asked. "I don't want to go through Treasure Town if I don't have to."

"You'll see," Shaymin said in a sing-song voice before he continued towards Treasure Town. "Trust me, it'll be great."

"…I highly doubt that, but fine," Axle said. "Let's just get this over with already."

Axle continued on slowly behind Shaymin as Shaymin took him through Treasure Town. Axle once again had to deal with the scrutiny of the townspeople, though he only focused on his teammate. The two walked for a while until they reached the Marowak Dojo on nearly the other side of the town. Axle nearly stopped for a second when he saw Shaymin walk towards the dojo.

"So what, are we going to fight or something?" Axle asked. "Is this how you're trying to get my mind of things?"

"Nah, I don't feel like fighting you," Shaymin said. "There's something else for you though."

"Joy," Axle said with a groan.

Shaymin flew into the dojo with Axle following slowly behind. They went through the waiting room, where Axle noticed that Marowak was absent from his usual spot, and into the dojo arena at the end of the place where Axle noticed a bunch of training dummies in the shape of Substitute Dolls placed in various positions on the tan ground of the arena. Axle's gaze was drawn to the dolls, wondering what those dolls were doing there.

"So am I training here or something?" Axle asked. He walked forward to the closes substitute doll to him to get a better look at it.

"I wouldn't do that," Shaymin said in a sing-song voice.

Axle turned around to look at Shaymin and attempted to ask, "What are you talking abo-?"

Before Axle could finish that question though a Shadow Ball hit the Substitute Doll behind him, causing it to explode. The explosion blew Axle forward a bit and caused him to rub across the ground. When Axle looked back to see what happened, he noticed Marowak finally, and standing beside him was a familiar eevee standing on the other side of the doll.

"Oops, sorry about that Axle," Eon apologized. "Didn't notice you were there."

"Eon?!" Axle asked. The riolu quickly ran up to her to get a closer look at her. Eon still was wrapped in gauze, though it was a bit smaller this time, only being wrapped around the upper part of her body behind her neck. Her fur also was shorter overall to make up for the fur she lost. Finally, Eon donned her blue Defense Scarf with the Relic Fragment pattern on it once again.

"Yeah," Shaymin said. "The doctors finally cleared her for release today while you were gone. She'll still have to get checked out by Chimecho for a bit, but she can finally get out of that cramped infirmary."

"But what are you doing here?" Axle asked Eon.

"Practicing," Eon answered. "I've been sitting on my backside for weeks and I'm gonna need some practice before I can get back into explorations. So I'm gonna spend the time I'm unable to explore getting ready for them."

"...But aren't you…?" Axle asked, but he wasn't really able to finish that question.

"Yeah, I've already tried, without pushing myself too hard," Eon said, lowing her head a bit when she said that. "I can't really use my physical moves that well anymore." Eon shook her head and stood taller. "But I'm not going to give up! I might not be able to now, but if I keep up my rehab I might be able to in the future! I know they said it would have to be a miracle to do it, but I'm not giving up! And until then, I've got something else up my sleeve. Watch this!"

Orbs of light appeared around Eon and she shot those orbs of light at a nearby target. Not all those orbs hit, in fact most of them missed completely, but Eon did that more as a demonstration than anything. The eevee then shot out stars from her mouth, all of those stars completely hitting the target. With all that done, Eon flashed a smile in Axle's direction.

"See?" Eon asked. "I taught myself Hidden Power and Swift. That, with Shadow Ball, means I can fight from afar. Granted, I'll be a sitting duck for the most part, but at least this way I can hold my own in a fight without hurting myself."

"So in other words, Eon can still fight," Shaymin said. "Yeah, we're gonna have to change up our tactics while exploring, but I'm sure we can manage. It'll be difficult, but I'm sure we can do it."

"Thinks might not be the same, but we'll make do," Eon said. "So please don't give up Axle."

"…" Axle crossed his arms and gave Eon a smile. "Thanks Eon. I won't if you won't."

"Now we should probably head off," Shaymin said. "I can feel that night's about to fall and we should probably all get some rest."

"Well…if you guys don't mind, I'm going to stay here for a big longer," Eon said. "I've still got a lot of work to do on my accuracy with Hidden Power and I want to train with a bit longer."

"Just make sure not to push yourself too hard," Axle said. "We don't need you to end up worse than you are."

Eon nodded. "Don't worry, I won't. I…think I've got an idea on my limits and either way Marowak here…" Marowak nodded, "is here to make sure I don't push myself too hard."

"Just be careful," Axle said. "Well…see you."

With a nod, Axle and Shaymin both left the dojo and went back into the sunset sky of Treasure Town. The two of them walked silently through the town, Axle looking forlorn as the two of them walked. Shaymin noticed this, so before they reached the end of the town Shaymin decided to ask about it.

"Something wrong?" Shaymin asked.

"…Eon's trying so hard," Axle said, looking to the floor instead of facing Shaymin. "She's really fighting to stay with the team. But…despite everything, a part of me still wishes that I went through with everything. Finding Ho-Oh and…you know."

"There's actually a philosophical question humans used to ask that's similar," Shaymin said. "'Would you steal some overpriced medicine to save a terminally ill loved one' or something like that. Honestly, there's no right or wrong answer. How you answer that just depends on who you are."

"Humans used to ask that?" Axle asked.

"Apparently, humans spent a bunch of time just thinking for whatever reason," Shaymin said. "But I guess that shows something about the two of you. You want to see Eon happy, while Eon just wants you to be by her side no matter what happens."

"…Yeah, you're right," Axle said, as he closed his eyes and nodded. "But for now…I guess I'm forced to wait. No matter how much I'd rather do something active. So long as she's still fighting, I'll be there. I promised her that much, so I'll keep walking this path. This is the decision I made."


End file.
